Fire and Tiger: Secrets of the Past
by Pixelfun20
Summary: Skyclan is thriving, and Hawkkit, son of Brambleclaw, and his siblings Firekit, Tawnykit and Featherkit, are bursting with energy, more than ready to become apprentices. However, a prophecy has been brewing under the guise of peace, and to save Skyclan, Hawkkit must unravel both himself and the greatest threat Skyclan has ever faced. Rewrite of Omen of the Stars
1. Prologue

**Oh hey, I've found another old **_**Warriors **_**story of mine. I started this in mid-2017, and upon stumbling across it once again a couple weeks ago, I've decided to try my hand at returning to it. Personally, I just love this concept.**

**This is a pretty big AU that actually separated from canon well before this story begins (just before/during **_**Fading Echoes**_**). Everything is canon up to **_**Sunrise**_ **(which is when the big change takes place). There is an explanation to why things are so drastically different, but it will be a time in coming. Ages for the younger members of Skyclan will also be off, but that's the fault of 2017-me, not the AU. **

**Updates will be every week or so until we catch up with my writing. If you have any criticism (I **_**did**_ **write this first part in 2017) or praise, please review! Have fun and thank you for reading!**

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**Prologue:**

The nearly full moon shone with a bright silver light in the night sky. Stars were splattered in the deep black around it, giving the earth below a sweet, silver sheen. Twoleg houses lined the earth, their insides quiet as the monsters slept silently on the Thunderpath.

On the side of said Thunderpath walked three cats. Leading them was a tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat, her sky-blue eyes alight with excitement. She bounded ahead of the two cats trailing her, sometimes getting far ahead before remembering the two behind her and slowing to a stop to let them catch up. She was on the thin side, but it was more than made up for with the strong muscles that rippled under her pelt.

In the middle was an unusually patterned she-cat, with short light brown fur and darker spots speckled over her back. Her light amber eyes glinted in the moonlight. She was slightly larger than the tortoiseshell she-cat, and carried the hints of an easy life with her limbs accented with traces of fat and a dark purple collar. She had a tired look in her eyes, but did not say anything, instead opting to drape her tail over the shoulders of the last cat.

Bringing up the rear of the small party was the largest one of the group, a heavily muscled brown tabby tom. However, he seemed to be faring the worst of the three. Several old scratches lined his pelt, mostly healed, save for a particularly nasty one that ran down the side of his flank. It was covered in cobwebs and a poultice of some kind, but was red and puffy, signalling the infection that plagued his body. He had a deep scar on his neck, and was out of breath, his dark amber eyes clouded with a dull pain. He did not complain, though, instead opting to bear his pain in silence as he pushed himself forward.

The tortoiseshell she-cat, finding herself in front of her two companions once again, lashed her tail, though more out of impatience than annoyance.

"Hurry up!" She announced, her voice dripping with excitement. "We're almost there! Just a little more!"

The spotted she-cat spared a glance at the tabby tom behind her, before turning her amber eyes on the tortoiseshell.

"You need to slow down, Cherrytail," she mewed worriedly. "We're all tired. I understand you're excited to get back, but you need to think of Brambleclaw. He's on the verge of collapse! Can't we find somewhere to shelter for the night?"

Cherrytail stopped completely, gasping as she bounded back to the two cats. "Oh, I'm so sorry, Brambleclaw!" She exclaimed. "In my impatience I completely forgot about your wound! Are you alright? We can find a place to stay if you need to stop."

The brown tabby—Brambleclaw—shook his head, his eyes lighting with a hint of stubbornness.

"No, I'm fine," he rasped, voice scratchy and hollow as the two caught up to her. "I know how much this means to you. We will get there tonight."

The spotted she-cat scoffed. "Not with that wound, you don't! I'm not letting you die this close to the finish. I didn't save your life back in the forest for nothing!"

"I think Eliza's right," Cherrytail sighed after a moment of hesitation, touching the tip of her tail to the scar Brambleclaw's neck, causing him to flinch away. "We can wait the night. In fact…" she looked up for a moment, thinking deeply, before grinning. "I think I know where we can stay! Come on!"

And with that she began walking again, despite Brambleclaw's (weak) protests, as well as at a slower rate. Eliza's ears perked up at the thought of rest, while the tom of the trio groaned, but followed his two companions as they turned down a side street. Passing by several Twoleg nests, they came across a medium-sized tan nest with neatly-cropped grass. Cherrytail flicked a tail, motioning for Brambleclaw and Eliza to stay where they were, and leaped up onto fence lining the yard, bounding around to the back.

After several tense moments between Brambleclaw and Eliza, both of whom seemed slightly confused about what Cherrytail was doing, a sharp screech sounded from the back, followed by loud barking. Brambleclaw's eyes widened, and he unsheathed his claws, readying himself to leap up after the tortoiseshell she-cat, when said cat burst into sight, blue eyes wide as she rejoined her companions, breathing heavily.

"Wrong house," she gasped, chuckling slightly. "That one had a dog."

Eliza nodded, calm, while Brambleclaw hissed, cuffing her weakly over the head.

"Be more careful!" he scolded the younger she-cat. "I thought you knew better than to just jump into a Twoleg nest!"

Cherrytail flattened her ears in embarrassment. "Yeah. My mistake. I haven't been in the twoleg place for so long, I've nearly forgotten where all the nests are."

"Who are we meeting, anyways?" Eliza questioned. "It better not be someone associated with Cyanide again. They nearly killed us last time!"

"I didn't _mean_ to run into Kenzie and her cronies!" Cherrytail hissed back, rolling her eyes. "I was looking for Stick and Cora! I had no idea they were with them."

Eliza snorted. "Tell that to Brambleclaw's wound. He nearly died protecting you!"

Said tom flicked an ear, embarrassed. "It's fine, Eliza. I told you that. And Cherrytail, it isn't your fault. If anything, it was mine, attacking like that. It was uncalled for, no matter how much he deserved it."

Cherrytail blinked, thankful that the tabby tom had agreed with her, before turning her eyes upwards towards the Twoleg nests, scanning them again, and finally stopped at a nest similar to the one she had previously tried to look into. She leapt onto that nest's fence, bounding around to the back. Once again, Brambleclaw and Eliza found themselves in a tense silence as they waited for her.

After a moment, Cherrytail appeared again, nodding to the others to show that she had found her contact. Eliza jumped up after her first, easily reaching the top, then turned around to help Brambleclaw up as he leapt after her, gasping in pain as his wound reopened slightly, a trickle of blood making its way past the cobweb binding.

The tortoiseshell she-cat hurried to the tabby tom's side, licking him comfortingly and sending a look of thanks to Eliza, who nodded in return.

"You alright?" She asked, nosing Brambleclaw gently. "We're almost there."

"I'm fine," Brambleclaw insisted, pushing past Eliza and towards the Twoleg den. "Do you know a kittypet here, Cherrytail? Can they be trusted?"

"Kind of, and of course!" The she-cat responded. "Let me try and get him."

With that, Cherrytail jumped down the fence and made her way towards the Twoleg nest. Stopping for a moment to take a deep breath, she pushed through the back door through a cat flap, her dark tail disappearing with a swoosh. Several more minutes passed, the time stretching out as Brambleclaw made a slow descent down the fence, Eliza at his side, as they struggled not to open the infected wound any more than they already had.

Finally, Cherrytail exited the Twoleg nest, her eyes alight with joy. Coming up behind her was a ginger and white tom with leaf-green eyes. He almost seemed to be in a state of shock, following Cherrytail numbly.

"I…" the tom began, looking at Cherrytail before pressing his nose to her flank happily. "Cherrytail! It's been almost three seasons! After the twolegs took you… everyone thought you were dead… how'd you get back?"

"It's a very long story," the tortoiseshell purred, before sombering and gesturing with her tail to her two companions. "Look, we need a place to stay for the night before going on to camp in the morning. Can you help us?"

"Will I help you—" The tom cut off as his eyes fell on Brambleclaw's wound. "Dear Starclan! What happened to you?" He blinked in apology almost immediately afterwards. "Excuse me, that was a bit rude. Of course you can stay with me tonight. Can you tell me your names? I'm Billystorm."

"Billystorm?" Brambleclaw echoed. "That sounds a bit like a warrior name. Why are you with Twolegs?"

Billystorm and Cherrytail shared a glance.

"It's a long story," The ginger-and-white tom replied.

"Anyways, I'm Brambleclaw," the tabby continued, putting aside the matter. "This is Eliza, a friend of ours who came with us on our journey."

Billystorm nodded.

"Let's get inside," Cherrytail mewed after a moment of awkwardness. "We have a big day tomorrow."

Billystorm purred. "Yes. I'm sure Leafstar will be ecstatic to have you back, as well as the two of you, if you so wish. Echosong, our medicine cat, will help you with your wound, Brambleclaw, that I'm certain of."

Brambleclaw flicked his tail as Eliza nodded excitedly. With that, the four cats ducked into the twoleg nest. Eliza was last, her excited mew floating in the nighttime air.

"I can hardly believe it! Tomorrow, we'll be Skyclan cats!"

The backyard of the Twoleg nest was quiet after that, with nothing left to make any noise.

After several moments, however, the wind began to blow, picking up from nearly nothing to a hard breeze, pulling up dust and feathers as it went. It began to blow even harder, until the wind itself began to swirl in one place, silver lines appearing in its depths.

The first to form was a head, with darker gray markings and pale blue eyes. His body formed next, mottled gray fur shining with pinpricks of lights. His legs each took shape soon after, followed at last by his tail.

The star-speckled tom stepped forwards on the lawn, looking at the Twoleg nest as if he could see what was occurring inside. After a moment, a small smile formed on his face, nostalgia and bittersweet happiness lining his features.

"_See? They're safe."_

The tom's voice was soft and carried on the wind, more to himself than anything.

"_I promise you, I will protect the third part of the prophecy."_

He snorted, looking up at the sky.

"_Now all you need to do is find the second of the three, Lionblaze."_


	2. Chapter 1

**Wow, so this is what it feels like to update when you say you will...**

**Here's Chapter 1, right on time!**

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**Chapter 1:**

**Allegiances**:

Skyclan:

Leader: Leafstar—brown-and-cream mottled she-cat with amber eyes

Deputy: Sharpclaw—dark ginger tom with amber eyes

Medicine Cat(s): Echosong—silver tabby she-cat with green eyes

Warriors:

Patchfoot—black-and-white tom with green eyes. Apprentice, Hollypaw

Petalnose—pale gray she-cat with blue eyes

Sparrowpelt—dark brown tabby tom. Apprentice, Sandypaw

Waspwhisker—gray-and-white tom with blue eyes

Shrewtooth—skinny black tom with pale yellow eyes. Apprentice, Birdpaw

Ebonyclaw—striking black she-cat with green eyes (Daylight warrior)

Billystorm—ginger-and-white tom with leaf-green eyes (Daylight warrior)

Harveymoon—white tom (Daylight warrior)

Macgyver—black-and-white tom with yellow eyes (Daylight warrior)

Rockshade—black tom with blue eyes

Bouncefire—ginger tom with amber eyes. Apprentice, Honeypaw

Tinycloud—small white she-cat with blue eyes. Apprentice, Stormpaw

Sagenose—Pale gray tom with amber eyes

Rabbitleap—Brown tom with blue eyes. Apprentice, Harrypaw

Creekfeather—Gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Nettlesplash—Pale brown tom with amber eyes

Brambleclaw—Large brown tabby tom with dark amber eyes; former loner. Apprentice, Juniperpaw

Seedtail—Brown she-cat with darker spots paws, and amber eyes; former kittypet

Nightheart—Huge black tom with white paws and yellow eyes; former rogue

Lakestream—Gray she-cat with a white belly and green eyes (Daylight warrior)

Apprentices:

Harrypaw—Gray tom with dark amber eyes

Stormpaw—Gray-and-ginger she-cat with amber eyes

Juniperpaw—Cream tabby tom with yellow eyes; former loner

Birdpaw—Black she-cat with blue eyes

Honeypaw—Pale ginger she-cat with green eyes

Sandypaw—Light brown tom with ginger legs and green eyes

Hollypaw—Black tom with gray paws and amber eyes (Daylight apprentice)

Queens:

Clovertail—light brown she-cat with white belly and legs and green eyes (Adopted: Violetkit—Black-and-white she-cat with green eyes, Twigkit—Gray she-cat with green eyes, Thrushkit—Light brown tabby tom with green eyes, Rustlekit—Dark gray tom with blue eyes)

Mintfur—Gray tabby she-cat (expecting Nettlesplash's kits)

Cherrytail—tortoiseshell-and-white she-cat with blue eyes (Nursing Brambleclaw's kits: Tawnykit—Tortoiseshell she-cat with amber eyes, Featherkit—Brown she-cat with a white underbelly and blue eyes, Hawkkit—Brown tabby tom with white paws and dark amber eyes, Firekit—Light ginger tom with a white underbelly and blue eyes)

Plumwillow—Dark gray she-cat with green eyes (Nursing Sagenose's kits: Flightkit—Dark gray she-cat with pale green eyes, Owlkit—Light brown tabby tom with green eyes, Ashenkit—Gray tabby she-cat with a lighter belly and blue eyes)

Elders:

Fallowfern—Pale brown she-cat with blue eyes. Deaf

Brackenfall—Light brown tabby tom with green eyes; former loner

Tangle—ragged tabby tom loner with amber eyes

Cats Outside of the Clans:

Ravenpaw—Jet black tom with a white dash, tail-tip and amber eyes

Barley—Black-and-white tom with blue eyes

Bella—Pale ginger she-cat with white stripes and green eyes

Riley—Pale gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Blacktop—Huge black tom with yellow eyes

Moonlight—Silver-gray she-cat with green eyes

Haven—Pretty pure white she-cat with amber eyes

Ripper—Black she-cat with white streaks and ice blue eyes

Pasha—Very dark, almost black tabby tom with green eyes

Hera—Light gray-and-white patched she-cat with blue eyes

Percy—Dark brown longhaired tom with yellow eyes

Annabeth—Light sandy-colored she-cat with blue-gray eyes

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"Watch out! The foxes are attacking!"

Hawkkit squealed in surprise at the battle cry. His brown tabby fur fluffed up to almost twice its size as a large form leaped on top of him, pinning him the ground and squashing the air out of him.

"Featherkit! I told you, I don't wanna play clan versus foxes anymore!" Firekit's whiny voice rang out, and the weight on Hawkkit's back shifted as his sister hissed.

"Oh, be quiet, Firekit! You're such a baby! Go play with Tawnykit or something if you don't want to have fun!" Featherkit's voice was right next to his ear, making Hawkkit wince at its volume. Annoyed, the tabby kit heaved himself upwards while his sister was distracted, using his larger form to throw her off of him and onto the sandy ground. Featherkit squeaked indignantly, shaking the dirt off of her brown pelt and licking her ruffled white chest hairs.

"I win," Hawkkit announced proudly, puffing out his chest. His sister only rolled her eyes, as Firekit looked at his two littermates in a mixture of fear and annoyance, his light ginger pelt and white belly blending him in well with the rest of the den.

"No fair!" Featherkit whined. "I was distracted by Firekit! I call a rematch!"

"Surprise is a warrior's greatest strength," Hawkkit simply quoted, using the common phrase he would hear the apprentices tell them. "You'll need to learn that if you ever want to be an apprentice."

"I know that, mouse-brain!" Featherkit flicked an ear, and before Hawkkit could bite back a reply, she pounced, causing the two kits to roll on the ground, batting at each other with sheathed claws.

Suddenly, Hawkkit's rolling came to a stop as he felt himself crash against a warm body. He and Featherkit quickly sprung apart, wriggling away from the cat they fallen onto.

"Hawkkit! Featherkit!" Clovertail's voice was sharp and stern. "Watch where you are going! You could've hurt the kits!"

Hawkkit flattened his ears, chastened by the queen's scolding, while Featherkit merely scoffed and looked away.

"They're no fun," she muttered. "Those four scraps of fur just take up room in the nursery. Firekit and _Tawnykit_ are funner to play with!"

"Featherkit!" Clovertail exclaimed, while Hawkkit gasped at his sister's defiance. Clovertail was really nice, but you never wanted to get on her bad side. What was she thinking? "Out! Now!"

The brown she-kit huffed, turning around and stalking out of the den. Hawkkit, Firekit, and Clovertail watched her leave, the two brothers in a mix of shock and resignation.

"Um, sorry about that," Hawkkit apologised awkwardly, turning to Clovertail. "It seems like Featherkit has had bees in her fur all morning."

Clovertail sighed, flicking an ear. "It's alright," she responded, looking down at the four kits curled into her belly, all taking their afternoon nap. Hawkkit blinked, tilting his head as he looked at them.

Skyclan had been growing over the past couple moons. There had been seven kits—Hawkkit and his siblings Firekit, Tawnykit, and Featherkit, and then Plumwillow's kits: Ashenkit, Owlkit, and Flightkit—when Clovertail's four adopted kits had been found at the border of the clan several sunrises ago. Their mother was nowhere to be found, but had left behind behind five kits, barely under a moon old, on their own. Petalnose, having been on the patrol, had persuaded Waspwhisker to take them back to camp. The fifth kit had died on the journey back. Hawkkit remembered when they had arrived, the patrol bursting into camp with the starving kits in their jaws. He had watched beside Featherkit with wide eyes as they had asked Clovertail to take them in, and the queen had readily agreed. Already, she was fiercely protective of her new kits.

Hawkkit blinked as the black-and-white kit, Violetkit, shifted in her sleep, calling out softly. Next to her was her sister, a gray she-kit named Twigkit for her small size. Then there were the two brothers, Thrushkit and Rustlekit, a light brown tabby tom and a dark gray tom respectively, nearly inseparable from each other.

Despite their exciting entrance, the new kits were kinda boring, which meant that Hawkkit wasn't that into them. All they did was eat and sleep! Echosong said they were still recovering and could play in a few sunrises, but they were so _small_. And since Hawkkit took mostly after his father, it meant that he'd probably crush them on accident if he tried to play with them.

"They're so cute," Firekit purred, coming up to Hawkkit's side, his sky-blue eyes alight. He seemed to have recovered from the storm that was Featherkit. "I like Twigkit the best."

"I guess so," Hawkkit shrugged, tilting his head at them. He could see how his brother liked Twigkit, though. Like Firekit, Twigkit was the runt of her litter. "Rustlekit's the biggest, though. Bet you he'd make a good warrior."

Firekit's ears perked up as he studied the dark gray kitten. "Yeah, but Violetkit eats a lot. Maybe she'll pass him up."

"Mouse-brain!" Hawkkit shoved the ginger kit playfully. "She-cats don't get bigger than toms!"

"Yeah they can!" Firekit shot back. "Have you _seen_ Ebonyclaw? She's huge!"

"She's a daylight warrior! And no she-cat will ever pass up Brambleclaw. He's at least twice her size."

"But that's _Brambleclaw_. He was, like, born to be the biggest cat in the whole world!"

Hawkkit snorted, pouncing on his brother once again. It was easy to tackle his smaller littermate. He quickly gained the upper hand in their wrestling contest, and had Firekit under his paws in three heartbeats flat. Hawkkit purred as he felt the mild annoyance and discomfort roll off of the ginger-and-white tom.

"No fair, Hawkkit!" He whined.

"Hawkkit! Firekit!" Clovertail's scolding voice interrupted the two's quarrel, emanating annoyance with a mixture of contentment and happiness. "I mean it. Play outside or not at all!"

Hawkkit quickly scrambled off of Firekit, the two deciding not to face the eldest's queen's wrath, and scampered out of the nursery.

Harsh sunlight met Hawkkit's eyes as he and Firekit exited the cave. Outside, the early newleaf sun was warming the rocky gorge, all of Skyclan's warriors up and about as the day began. By the Rockpile, he could see the deputy, Sharpclaw, organizing a patrol consisting of Petalnose, Rockshade, Honeypaw, and Nightheart. Nearby, Harveymoon and Macgyver—they always made up the _best_ games—were sharing tongues over a large rabbit.

"Where's Featherkit?" Firekit mewed, his ginger tail sticking up as he searched for their headstrong sister.

Hawkkit frowned, looking over the gorge to see the brown-and-white she-kit talking with a black tom with gray paws and a cream tabby tom. "There she is! With Hollypaw and Juniperpaw!"

Firekit took off, scampering down the gorge, as Hawkkit trailed behind him. Sometimes he hated his large size; it was difficult to keep up with his younger brother, thanks to him being much too big for his paws. The two littermates jumped down a couple rocks before reaching the trio. One of the apprentices, Juniperpaw, sat up as they approached, purring.

"Well, it seems that some more kits have come to talk with us!" He mewed, nudging Hollypaw. "Featherkit here was just asking us to teach her some battle moves. Think we can take two more students, Hollypaw?"

The black-and-gray tom shrugged, not really caring. "I don't mind. At least, not that much."

"Ooh!" Hawkkit squealed, shooting a betrayed look at Featherkit. "Battle moves? Featherkit, why didn't you wait for me? You were trying to get the upper paw on me in our fight again, weren't you?"

"It's not my fault you were too busy looking at those furball kits," his sister shot back, though the smile on her face took the bite out of her words.

"Th-they aren't furballs!" Firekit protested with a stammer. "I like them!"

Featherkit rolled her eyes at Hawkkit, annoyance practically dripping off her pelt, before turning back to the two older toms. "Well?" she questioned. "You said you'd show how to attack."

Juniperpaw laughed. "Patience," he mewed. "I was getting to it! See, a basic attack works like this." Suddenly, he turned on Hollypaw, his paws coming down on the black tom's head. Startled, Hollypaw dodged, rolling out of the way.

"Give me a warning next time," he muttered, shaking out his pelt.

Hawkkit gasped in awe at the apprentice's skill, feeling admiration from Firekit and envy from Featherkit. He had to try this himself! He turned on his paws and attacked Featherkit, trying his best to copy the move he had just seen. However, Featherkit had long seen him coming, and rolled off to the side, pouncing on top of him. Grunting, Hawkkit bucked upwards, throwing off his sister and attacking again, their play-fight quickly turning into a wrestling match.

Things went on like that for a while. Featherkit and Hawkkit continued to play fight, neither littermate getting the upper hand until Featherkit stumbled on a pebble, and Hawkkit threw himself on top of her, squishing the air out of her lungs.

"Fine!" The brown-and-white she-kit gasped, wheezing. "Alright! I give!"

"Looks like we have a winner," Juniperpaw commented. Hawkkit looked up, having nearly forgotten that he was there. "Good job! I think both of you will make great warriors—just not as good as me, of course. When's your apprentice ceremony, anyways?"

It was Firekit who answered. He hadn't opted to join his siblings' fight, and had settled himself next to Hollypaw. "Tomorrow, I think. Brambleclaw says Leafstar says that we're more than ready."

"Already?" Juniperpaw exclaimed. "I remember when I first met you, as three-moon-old kits. Time sure does fly by fast. It feels like I've been part of the clan for seasons."

Hawkkit nodded. Juniperpaw was a former rogue who had been recruited by Rockshade three moons ago, and was actually the age of a young warrior. His aging father, Brackenfall, had joined the elder's den with Fallowfern and Tangle.

"You can say that again," Hollypaw nodded. He was the clan's sole daylight apprentice, living with Twolegs at night but hunting and fighting for the clan during the day. From what Hawkpaw had heard, he'd found out about the clan back when he was a kit, and had joined as a daylight apprentice when he'd hit his sixth moon.

Across the camp, a commotion began, causing the apprentices and kits to look up towards the top of the gorge, where a patrol was making their way down to the camp. Hawkkit squinted and identified Stormpaw and Harrypaw, Leafstar's kits, leading the procession down the camp, their heads and tails held high in elation. Behind them, Tinycloud and Rabbitleap were just as excited as their apprentices, talking animatedly as Leafstar, Sharpclaw, and Patchfoot brought up the rear.

"Oh, it's Harrypaw and Stormpaw!" Firekit exclaimed, grinning. "They must've gotten back from their warrior assessment! I wonder how it went?"

"Yes, I wonder," Featherkit monotoned. "Their joyful expressions really leave _so_ much up to debate."

"Stop being mean, Featherkit!"

"Me, mean? You're the one being a mouse-brain!"

"Alright, you two," Hollypaw stepped forwards, putting himself in between the quarreling littermates. "_Both_ of you be nice."

"Besides," Juniperpaw flicked an ear. "At least Featherkit, with all her pride—"

"Hey!"

"Isn't nearly as bad as Stormpaw." He scrunched up with face and pitched up his voice in a poor imitation of the senior apprentice's voice. "_My name is Stormpaw and I'm the best and strongest cat in the world all because the great Leafstar is my mother._ Pah, she's going to be even worse now that she's becoming a warrior."

Hollypaw snorted. "You can say that again. I'm lucky I don't share a den with her."

Hawkkit snorted at Juniperpaw's false imitation of the she-cat. Stormpaw was well-known throughout the clan of being, well, a pain in the tail. Her brother, Harrypaw, was a lot nicer, but Stormpaw just refused to learn of the term _subtlety._

"That's the elder's den for both of you. You know better than to insult your clanmates like that."

The five cats jumped, surprised, and turned to see a large tom padding up to them. He had dark, tabby brown fur and an ugly looking scar across his throat that Hawkkit had always insisted made him look cool and intimidating. However, his dark amber eyes twinkled with a hidden humor, even as Juniperpaw and Hollypaw moaned in unison.

"Brambleclaw!" Hawkkit, Featherkit, and Firekit exclaimed in unison, jumping up and tackling their father. The mighty tom staggered slightly from their combined weight, but quickly recovered and laughed.

"It's good to see you three!" He purred, practically vibrating tiny Firekit, who had latched onto his side. "Sorry I didn't stop by this morning. Juniperpaw and I had the dawn patrol."

"It's alright, Dad!" Firekit squealed happily, nuzzling his face into his father's fur. "How was the patrol?"

"Did you catch anything?" Hawkkit inquired.

"Chase off any rogues?" Featherkit squeaked. Without waiting for an answer, she leapt off of her father and began tearing at the ground with unsheathed claws. "I would've ripped their pelts off!"

"No, of course not!" Brambleclaw drew his tail over his daughter's back in a placating manner. "You know Skyclan is welcome to all outsiders, Featherkit. And we didn't catch much, Hawkkit, as it was only a border patrol, but Juniperpaw did catch a shrew on the way back."

"Lucky," The brown tabby kitten shook out his soft fur. "Why can't we go outside of the camp yet? We're almost six moons! So close!"

"But not close enough," Brambleclaw pushed at him playfully with his nose, and Hawkkit couldn't help but draw away slightly.

"Aw, c'mon Dad!"

"Do we really have to clean the elder's den?" It was Hollypaw who interrupted the moment between the family, looking slightly annoyed.

"Yes, Hollypaw," Brambleclaw nodded as Firekit bounced off of his side, landing happily with his tail sticking straight up. "And I expect it to have been done _well_."

"Ugh," Juniperpaw complained, throwing up his muzzle to the sky. "I'll have to deal with _Tangle_." He suddenly flattened his ears as he realised his mistake and Brambleclaw shot him a warning look. "Ah, I mean… off to clean the elder's den! Bye!" In a flash of his brown-tipped tail, he was off, bounding up towards the elder's den before his mentor could have a chance to punish him any further.

"Are you waiting for me to tell you something?" Brambleclaw questioned to Hollypaw, who had yet to move. The black-and-gray tom simply rolled his eyes discreetly and turned after his friend, leaping up onto a rock and out of sight.

"Aw," Featherkit sighed. "They were showing us more battle moves!"

"You'll have more than enough time to learn when you're apprenticed," Brambleclaw shook his head. He stood up, shaking the sand out of his fur. "Now how about we make our way to the Rockpile? I'm sure you want to see Stormpaw and Harrypaw's warrior ceremonies."

"Yes!" Hawkkit and Firekit squeaked at the same time, jumping to their feet, while Featherkit bounded ahead them both. As if on cue, Leafstar's voice cut through the mid-morning air.

"All cats who are old enough to catch their own prey please gather under the Rockpile for a clan meeting!"

The three littermates charged towards the bottom of the camp at Leafstar's call, all wanting to see the ceremony take place. It had been a long time since there had been a warrior ceremony—the last had been Lakestream, a daylight warrior, and Harrypaw and Stormpaw had been delayed due to a bought of greencough that had ravaged the clan last leaf-bare—so all were extremely excited to see the oldest apprentices rise up the ranks.

Already, several cats had gathered below Leafstar, who had situated herself on the very top of the Rockpile, so the three kits had to push past Waspwhisker and Nettlesplash in order to get to the very front. Hawkkit made sure he had a good view on Featherkit's side. Looking around the crowd of cats, he caught sight of Cherrytail, his mother, walking towards them, her white-and-tortoiseshell fur shining in the sunlight. Beside her hopped Tawnykit, looking like a miniature version of her mother, save for her darker coat and amber eyes.

"There you four are!" She purred, licking Featherkit, who ducked away.

"Ew, Mom! I'm not a tiny kitten!" Came her inevitable protest.

"You'll always be my little kitten," Cherrytail responded. "Besides, have you seen your fur? It's sticking up in every direction! I can't have you being presented in such a manner."

"This isn't our ceremony!" Featherkit squealed, trying in vain to avoid her mother's grooming. Hawkkit giggled at his sister's predicament.

"Oh, don't think you've gotten away without a bath too," Cherrytail angled an eye at her son. "You're just as bad as your sister. Brambleclaw?"

"Oh no." Hawkkit tried to move, but it was too late. His father descended on him with a flurry of licks, smoothing down his rattled fur into a sleek coat. "Do you always have to groom us? We're almost six moons!"

"Until you learn how to do it yourself, yes," Cherrytail nodded, drawing away from Featherkit, who had a glowering look that could kill a fox.

"Firekit and Tawnykit don't get this much attention!"

"That's because they don't get into half as much trouble as the two of you. You would do well to follow their example every once in awhile."

"Thanks, Mom," Tawnykit purred while Firepaw drew his paws over his ears in embarrassment.

Any further conversation or argument was quickly cut off as Leafstar began to speak. Hawkkit jumped and squirmed around Brambleclaw so he could see. He hadn't realised she was already going to start!

"I, Leafstar, leader of Skyclan," Leafstar began. Hawkkit couldn't help but feel a wave of admiration for how regal his leader looked at the moment. "Call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in turn."

She turned to Stormpaw first. As expected, she was extremely proud of herself, her gray-and-ginger fur groomed to near perfection.

"Stormpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Her amber eyes blazed with pride. "I do."

At that moment, a similar amount of pride flowed from Leafstar, though she didn't show most of it publicly.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Stormpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Stormheart. StarClan honors your dedication and skill, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Skyclan."

She turned to Harrypaw next, leaving the newly named Stormheart to point her muzzle up in the most regal way possible. _Flea-brain,_ Hawkkit could help but think.

By this time Leafstar had begun speaking again. "Harrypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do." Unlike Stormheart, the gray tom was more humble, bowing his head to his mother, though his tail-tip trembled with anticipation.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Harrypaw, from this moment you will be known as Harrybrook. StarClan honors your empathy and loyalty, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Skyclan."

Leafstar rested her muzzle on Stormheart's head, and the ginger-and-gray she-cat licked her shoulder, then repeated the process with Harrybrook. As she drew away, the clan erupted into cheers.

"Stormheart! Harrybrook! Stormheart! Harrybrook!"

"Harrybrook!" Hawkkit joined in himself, trying to overpower Brambleclaw's strong cries with his own. Next to him, Tawnykit shouted their names as well, while Featherkit and Firekit were slightly envious of the new warriors. Cherrytail had moved to sit next to her mate, who curled his tail against hers.

Hawkkit couldn't help but feel an odd feeling rising in his chest. Even though he didn't know what it was, it felt nice, and he let it spread from his chest to his tail-tip, basking in its warmth. In that moment, everything felt perfect.

Things were good.


	3. Chapter 2

**Finally managed to update. Thank you all for your reviews/follows. It's good to know that someone out there likes my work.**

**My profile is frequently updated to display update times and progress reports, by the way, if any of you are interested.**

* * *

**Chapter 2:**

"Hawkkit! Hawkkit, wake up!"

"Wha? Wassit?" It took a moment for Hawkkit to realise the whiny, mumbling voice was his. Blinking his eyes open, he stretched, wincing as a paw jabbed into his side. Grumbling, he batted the paw away, shaking the sleep out of his eyes and letting the world come into focus around him.

He was in the nursery, as per usual. Cherrytail and Firekit were curled next to him, still deep in sleep, though Tawnykit and Featherkit were already gone. Turning around, he came face-to-face with a gray she-kit, perhaps about half his size, with gray tabby fur, blue eyes, with darker stripes and a lighter belly. She flicked her ears in slight annoyance at him.

"C'mon, Hawkkit! You promised to play with us one last time!" She whispered, careful not to wake up Firekit or Cherrytail.

"Oh, Ashenkit." He barely remembered to keep his voice down in time. "Let's go outside. I need to wake up before we can talk at all."

"Mouse-brain," came the teasing whispered response, before the gray tabby kit turned tail and bounded outside of the nursery cave. Hawkkit followed after her more slowly, careful not to walk on the mismatched bundle of furs that were Twigkit, Violetkit, Thrushkit, and Rustlekit. _I can't wait to become an apprentice. It's so crowded in here_. Wait. He paused for a moment. _Leafstar was saying it'd be today!_

And all of a sudden, he was awake, bounding out of the den as quickly and quietly as was possible. Bounding out of the den, he turned down the rockface, just catching sight of Ashenkit's fluffy tail as it disappeared behind a pile of rocks. Purring to himself—that was Ashenkit for you; she never waited for anything—he followed her, mood uplifted by his earlier realisation.

Behind the pile of rocks sat Tawnykit, Featherkit, a black she-kit, a light brown tom, and Ashenkit, who was just settling herself at the black she-kit's side.

"Finally!" Featherkit exclaimed at her brother's entrance. "It took you long enough! You sleep like a badger; Ashenkit had to come and get you!"

"Snores like one too," the black she-kit, Flightkit, muttered to herself. Ashenkit nudged her sister.

"That's not fair!" Hawkkit protested at his sister's words. "I was up late with Juniperpaw!"

"You made us wait," the brown-and-white she-kit snorted. Tawnykit sent her a look, while the brown tom, Owlkit, simply kneaded his paws in the ground, anxious to begin. "But no matter. Let's start!"

With a small leap, Featherkit jumped on top of the small pile of rocks and looked down over her littermates and friends. Hawkkit couldn't help but snort quietly to himself as she did so. Featherkit was trying to look intimidating, that he knew, but with her kitten-soft fur, looked rather silly.

"Welcome, warriors of Whispclan!" She declared, waving her tail wildly. "Tawnydawn, my medicine cat, I trust our herbs are in good supply?"

"Yes, Featherstar," Tawnykit replied. "But we need more chamomile. I'll collect it!"

"Flightfoot, my deputy, how have the patrols gone?"

"Not good," the black she-kit hissed, turning to glare at Ashenkit and tackling her to the ground. "Owlfeather and I found Ashenstep and Hawkflame on our border! Cloudclan has trespassed on our borders once again!"

"Oh, the deputy of Cloudclan himself!" Featherkit declared, and Hawkkit bristled out his fur in mock anger.

"Whispclan belongs to Cloudclan!" He growled, and Ashenkit wriggled her way out from under her sister to take her place next to Hawkkit. "We'll take it by force if we need to!"

"Yeah! Our kits need more food!" The gray she-kit added forcefully. Featherkit bristled.

"If you so wish, Hawkflame. Whispclan, attack!"

With that, the four kits clashed together. Hawkkit found himself face-to-face with Flightkit, who ducked under his initial tackle to rake her sheathed paws through his belly. Growling, he let himself fall on top of the smaller she-kit. Flightkit squealed in discomfort, and writhed underneath him, trying to dislodge his lumbering form.

Hawkkit glanced around the small cove where the makeshift battle was taking place. Featherkit and Owlkit were locked in battle with Ashenkit, who was starting to drown slightly under their bigger masses.

He and his siblings had started this game a while ago. A make-believe world where Whispclan live in the gourge, lead by Featherstar, her deputy Flightfoot, and senior warrior Owlfeather. Hawkkit had made himself Hawkflame, deputy of rival Cloudclan, where with his senior warrior Ashenstep, were locked in eternal war with Whispclan. Somehow, every game ended up in a battle. Tawnykit—now Tawnydawn—was always the medicine cat, though her allegiance tended to shift between Cloudclan and Whispclan, allying with whichever clan seemed the most in need of her input.

Flightkit finally squirmed out of Hawkkit's grasp, jabbing her paws into his face and causing him to reflexively close his eyes. Taking advantage of his distraction, she batted at his face, and Hawkkit retaliated by rolling over and headbutting her side.

The battle went on like this for some time. While Ashenkit wasn't the best fighter and thus eventually lost to the combined efforts of Featherkit and Owlkit, Hawkkit and Flightkit kept themselves fighting for some time longer. Hawkkit struggled to grasp the she-kit's sleek black coat while Flightkit herself didn't have the strength necessary to throw him off. Finally, the two separated at the sound of Featherkit's stomach growling.

"You two take this game so seriously!" Ashenkit purred as the two separated, shaking out her fur. It stuck up in untidy clumps from being tackled to the ground one too many times. Featherkit, meanwhile, only flicked an ear.

"Let's go see if there's anything to eat," she announced. "I'm so hungry I could eat a fox!"

"I could eat a badger!" Owlkit exclaimed.

"Oh yeah? Well, I could eat a horse! You can't get any bigger than that!" Ashenkit exclaimed, bouncing out from their play-camp. "Last one to the fresh-kill pile is a mouse!"

"What? No fair!" Owlkit complained, already running after her. "You get a head start!"

"Then we better get running!" Hawkkit exclaimed, bursting into a sprint despite his sore muscles. Behind him, he heard Owlkit squeak in surprise and annoyance, while Tawnykit let out a bark of laughter. As they raced out into the clearing, speedy Flightkit drew ahead of them, paws barely skimming the ground as she and Ashenkit raced for first place. Still tired—how in the world was Flightkit so fast after such a fight?—Featherkit and Tawnykit passed him up as well.

The four skidded into the fresh-kill pile. Hawkkit slowed to a strut as Featherkit and Tawnykit stopped as well, the brown-and-white she-kit having passed her sister in the last fox-lengths. Ashenkit and Flightkit, however, were so caught up in their race that neither could stop in time, and ended up crashing into the fresh-kill pile, sending prey flying everywhere.

"Look what you've done!" Tawnykit exclaimed as Flightkit sat up with a groan, a small mouse balancing on her head. "The whole pile is a mess! What are the warriors going to think?!"

"I'm not sure what I should think." The group of six turned to see a pale gray tom with amber eyes watching them in a mix of exasperation and amusement. Behind him, three more cats jumped up to the clearing. "But I'm fairly certain that this is the cause of another race."

"Sagenose!" Ashenkit and Owlkit squealed at the sight of their father, while Flightkit hurriedly shook off the mouse on her head, looking embarrassed.

"Are we in trouble?" The dark gray she-cat questioned, flattening her ears. Sagenose snorted.

"I'm very tempted."

"Oh, give them a break, Sagenose." A black-and-white tom, Patchfoot, nudged his shoulder. "You're always a lot harder on your own kits. My, I think you were easier on Nightheart, and he was your own apprentice!"

Sagenose's nose twitched, and he gave the senior warrior a look. Hawkkit and Tawnykit started giggling.

"You three are becoming apprentices today, aren't you?" Birdpaw, a black she-cat, mewed around a recently-killed rabbit locked in her mouth. Her mentor, Shrewtooth, also carried two mice between his jaws.

"Yep!" Featherkit squeaked, sitting up straight. She turned to Patchfoot. "Has Leafstar told you who's mentoring us? You're, like, the oldest warrior in the clan!"

Patchfoot's ear twitched, and Sagenose laughed. "You heard her, you old badger," he teased.

Tawnykit, meanwhile, cuffed Featherkit over the head while Ashenkit and Hawkkit burst into laughter.

"For the record, no, I don't," Patchfoot flicked his clanmate with his tail. "Only Sharpclaw and Leafstar will know for sure."

"Well, except for Tawnykit," Shrewtooth remarked, beginning to reform the fresh-kill pile. "I think we all know who her mentor will be. Mind helping me, Ashenkit, Flightkit? You made this mess in the first place."

The two sisters groaned, and Hawkkit silently sighed in relief, happy it wasn't him who had been stuck with such a punishment.

"You heard him," Sagenose tilted his head to the fresh-kill pile. "Get to work, you two."

Ashenkit reluctantly followed her father's orders, with Flightkit trailing behind her.

"This is all your fault," the dark gray she-cat grumped, causing her father to cuff her over the ear.

"This is both of you faults," he scolded. "Now get to work."

Hawkkit turned away from where his friends were working, and towards Tawnykit and Birdpaw—Owlkit and Featherkit had started play-fighting while he had turned away, though over what he had no idea.

"You really think Echosong will accept me?" The tortoiseshell kit was asking.

"Duh," the older apprentice scoffed. "I mean, come on, Tawnykit, you're practically her apprentice already!"

"Yeah!" Hawkkit agreed, nudging his sister. "You don't give yourself any credit. You already know, like, all of the herbs! Remember that time Featherkit hurt herself and you knew exactly what to do?"

"It was only a scratch," Tawnykit muttered, then looked over Hawkkit's shoulder. "Hey, look! It's Leafstar!"

The other two cats whipped around to see said leader on the Rockpile, conversing with her deputy, Sharpclaw. Hawkkit swore he saw the dark ginger tom send him a dark look, and he shivered. He had never liked Sharpclaw; the clan deputy was always so cold and distant to him and his siblings. As the trio watched, Patchfoot padded up to them, and began mewing to them quietly.

"What's he talking to them about?" Hawkkit asked, blinking. "Did something happen on the dawn patrol?"

Birdpaw flicked her ear, looking uncertain. "I'm not sure if should tell you…" she hesitated.

"Well you have to tell us now!" Hawkkit protested. "Don't leave us hanging!"

"We're almost apprentices!" Tawnykit protested as her brother aimed a blow on the black she-cat's side.

"Fine, I get the message." Birdpaw easily dodged Hawkkit's playful attack. "Well, we've been scenting rogue on our territory—more than one."

"Rogues?" Hawkkit echoed. "We'll be getting new clanmates soon, then! Like Juniperpaw and Brackenfall!"

"Maybe," Birdpaw shrugged. "But Shrewtooth says that only rogues who wish to join are friendly to the clan. Some don't like cats like us. They prefer to strike out alone."

"Who wouldn't want to be in a clan?" Hawkkit questioned, mystified. Who wouldn't want the companionship and protection of other cats?

"The Daylight warriors are here!"

Waspwhisker's voice drug the three out of their conversation. Tawnykit and Hawkkit bounced to their feet, excited.

As they watched, six cats made their way over the edge of the gorge and towards the main camp. Billystorm and Ebonyclaw were leading the way, the two senior warriors chatting cheerfully, followed by Harveymoon and Macgyver, who were laughing about something that must've happened on the way to camp. Bringing up the rear were Lakestream, the clan's newest daylight warrior, and Hollypaw.

"Ooh, Billystorm's here!" Tawnykit exclaimed. "Do you think he'll have any good stories today?"

"Maybe he'll tell us about Firestar and Sandstorm again!" Hawkkit added.

"Birdpaw!" They turned to see Honeypaw, Birdpaw's sister, call out to them. "Come on! Shrewtooth, Sparrowpelt, and Patchfoot are taking us out for battle training, remember?"

"Oh yeah!" Birdpaw started, standing up. She turned to the two kits. "Sorry, duty calls."

"You won't be staying for our ceremony?" Hawkkit whined, flattening his ears while Tawnykit looked slightly betrayed.

Birdpaw blinked. "Oh, mouse-dung. That's today, isn't it? Sorry. You'll tell me who you get for your mentors, right?"

"Of course we will!" Tawnykit exclaimed. Birdpaw laughed.

"I look forward to it. Anyways, I'll see you all later!"

"Bye!" The littermates choursed as the black she-cat bounded away. Featherkit and Owlkit walked up to them as she left.

"Where's Birdpaw going?" Owlkit questioned, shaking out his light brown pelt. It was covered in sand from the defeat he must've suffered at Featherkit's paws.

"Training," Tawnykit answered, also standing up. "I'm going to go see Echosong, alright? She's showing me how to use marigold today!"

"Wait until you're an apprentice, won't you?" Featherkit snorted amusedly Tawnykit only flicked an ear, trotting down to the medicine cat den.

"You think she'll have time for us once we become apprentices?" Hawkkit questioned as their sister whisked out of sight. "I mean, medicine cat is such an important job. What if she's too busy to play anymore?"

" 'S not like she plays much with us anyways," Featherkit snorted, grooming her paw. "All Tawnykit ever does is hang around Echosong. We hardly even _see _her anymore."

"She has a point," Owlkit said. "Maybe we should start letting Firekit play with us."

"Firekit?" Hawkkit scoffed. "I mean, I like him and all, but he's not a fighter or anything. He's just too much of a crykitten to be any fun."

"Now that's something we agree on," Featherkit nodded.

"Uh… excuse me?"

The trio whipped around in surprise to see a small kitten with black-and-white patched fur and wide, amber eyes staring at them. She was very thin, but seemed to be strong enough to walk around. It took Hawkkit a couple moments to recognize her in her conscious form.

"Violetkit?" he questioned, as Featherkit gasped. "What are doing out here? When did you wake up?"

"Does Clovertail know you're awake?" Owlkit added.

The black-and-white she-kit tilted her head at them, confused.

"Who are you?" She asked, and swept her gaze around camp, in awe and a slight panic. "Where am I? Where's Mama?"

"What?" Featherkit blinked, and Owlkit nudged her.

"She doesn't know anything, mouse-brain," the light brown tabby hissed, then raised his voice for her. "You're in the Skyclan camp. We found you abandoned with your littermates on the border. Who is your mother?"

"Skywhatnow?" Violetkit echoed. She began to panic slightly, beginning to breathe quickly. "Where's Mama? And Trigger?"

Hawkkit and his friends shared a panicked look, not knowing what to do. Soon the kit began to wail for her mother, and Hawkkit began to look around for some sort of help. He had no idea how to handle a crying kitten!

"What do we do?" Featherkit hissed, blue eyes wide with fear.

Thankfully, they were saved from having to do anything. Petalnose, her sleek gray fur freshly groomed, rushed down to them, Tinycloud right on her heels.

"What happened?" The senior warrior questioned, bending down to try and groom Violetkit comfortingly. "Violetkit, what's wrong?"

"She was asking us where she was, and where her mother and someone named 'Trigger' was," Hawkkit mewed, feeling better now that some older cats were here. "What is she talking about?"

Petalnose waved her tail for him to quiet. She seemed to be calming Violetkit down with her even licks, as she had stopped wailing at the top of her lungs. Tinycloud ran her tail reassuringly down Featherkit's back reassuringly.

"Who's your mother, little one?" Petalnose cooed quietly, drawing back when Violetkit had seemed to come back to earth. "Can you tell me her name?"

"Name?" the black-and-white kit repeated. "Her name's Mama. Where's Trigger? I saw Forte, Mason, and Twitch with that other she-cat, but where is he? And why are you calling me Violetkit? My name's Jamie."

"Is Trigger your brother?" Petalnose replied softly and patiently.

"Yes! Where is he?!" Her voice was starting to rise again. The senior warrior sighed.

"I don't know where your mother and brother are, little one, but I'm sure they'll be back for you soon enough. And we've changed your name. You are Violetkit now. Your siblings are Twigkit, Thrushkit, and Rustlekit."

"They're coming back?" Violetkit echoed. Petalnose smiled.

"Of course, little one."

"But you guys—" Featherkit's mouth was stuffed with Tinycloud's tail, effectively cutting her off.

"Violetkit!" Everyone turned around to see Cherrytail and Clovertail running towards them. Behind them trailed Firekit, unable to keep up with his mother. "Are you alright? You scared me half to death!"

" 'M fine," Violetkit murmured. "You're that nice she-cat, right? The one who's been feeding me?"

"Yes. I'm Clovertail."

"You guys have weird names."

"_We're_ the ones with weird names?" Hawkkit muttered. Cherrytail shot him a look and he flattened his ears in response. Who had names like _Jamie_?

"Is everything alright?" Hawkkit started in surprise as Leafstar padded up to them, her mottled brown-and-cream fur shining in the morning light.

"Yes, Leafstar," Tinycloud nodded, taking her tail out of Featherkit's mouth, who then spat out several white hairs in disgust. "Violetkit's just woken up. She was a bit disoriented."

Leafstar looked down to the moon-old kit, who gazed back with wide amber eyes. After a moment, the elder she-cat smiled.

"I'm Leafstar," she mewed warmly. "Leader of Skyclan, the cats who live in this gorge. And you are—?"

"Um," Violetkit stuttered, obviously a bit intimidated. "I-I'm Jamie. I me-mean, um, I guess I'm Violetkit now?"

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Violetkit," Leafstar purred. "Why don't you go back to the nursery? Your littermates should be waking any time now, and I'm sure Clovertail will be happy to answer any questions you have."

"Okay," Violetkit murmured. Purring, Clovertail picked her up by the scruff, carrying her back toward the nursery.

"Oh thank goodness." Petalnose slumped down slightly. "That was… something, there."

"What happened?" Firekit questioned. Owlkit leaned down to explain quietly the events of the past couple moments. Hawkkit and Featherkit shared a look, wondering what had brought Leafstar down to talk with them. Hawkkit himself wanted to ask, but he had the feeling it wouldn't be very appropriate...

"What brings you to the nursery, Leafstar?" Thankfully, it was Cherrytail who voiced their question for them.

"I just wanted to let you know that it's almost time for your kits' ceremonies. I wanted to give you enough time to groom them and all." She looked down at Hawkkit and his littermates. "Are you three ready to start your warrior training?"

"Yes!" All three kits shot up in excitement, tails sticking out.

"Is that even a question?" Featherkit continued. Leafstar purred.

"In all my moons I have never seen a kit unwilling to help their clan," she laughed. "So I guess that makes it a no."

Tinycloud laughed. "You can say that again. I've never seen Sagenose more tired since he became a father."

"We're not that bad!" Owlkit exclaimed. Cherrytail flicked her tail good-naturedly.

"Tell that to your sisters," she countered, then turned back to her leader. "I'll make sure that they're ready. Tinycloud, would you mind waking up Brambleclaw for me? I know he had sentry duty last night, but that gives him no excuse to miss his kits' ceremonies."

"Okay," the white she-cat nodded, bowed her head to Leafstar, and turned towards the warriors' den.

"Now," Cherrytail muttered, pulling Hawkkit towards her with her tail and beginning to groom him fiercely. "To make you all look halfway decent for your ceremonies."

"Ick!" Hawkkit exclaimed, trying to squirm out of his mother's grasp. For Starclan's sake, she seemed to be cleaning him whatever chance she got!

"I'll help you out, alright?" Petalnose was already pulling Featherkit towards her, who was trying desperately to get away, panic flaring off her pelt. Hawkkit snorted, glad she was getting put through the same torture he was.

Leafstar laughed. "We'll start the ceremony in a few moments," she mewed good-naturedly, before walking off to greet Billystorm and Harrybrook, who had just finished their breakfast.

Hawkkit winced as his mother kept on grooming him, making him feel uncomfortable and sticky. Opening one eye, he glimpsed Firekit snickering at him, and he growled slightly. That wasn't fair! Firekit _enjoyed _getting his baths!

Right as Cherrytail was finishing him up, Brambleclaw came up to them, fur ruffled as if he hadn't slept that well the night before. Hawkkit glanced at him, but didn't pay much attention to it, as Cherrytail had _finally_ released him. Taking his chance, he bounded away, squealing as he revelled in freedom.

"How are you doing, my little warrior?" Brambleclaw rumbled quietly, licking him on top of the head. Hawkkit drew back, lashing his tail in excitement.

"We're becoming apprentices today, Dad!" He fidgeted excitedly. "Who do you think will mentor me? Rockshade? Billystorm? Ooh, maybe even Harveymoon?"

"Leafstar will choose whoever she thinks will work with you best."

"Are you alright, Brambleclaw?" Cherrytail spoke up, nuzzling her mate gently. "You look exhausted."

"I'm alright," the large tabby tom shrugged. "Just dreaming, again. I'll be fine."

"Oh, dear," Cherrytail licked her mate comfortingly. "You should've woken me up! We've talked about this."

"I'll be _fine_," Brambleclaw accented the word good-naturedly this time. "It was no use bothering you. I just volunteered to keep lookout instead. Besides, it's the kits' big day, isn't it!"

"You bet it is!" Featherkit squeaked, having just been let go by Petalnose, who had moved on to a much more willing Firekit. "Six entire moons we've had to wait, Dad! _Six entire moons!_"

Brambleclaw chuckled. "I get it. I was the same way, actually, when I was your age. Where's Tawnykit?"

"Over with Echosong," Hawkkit responded. "As usual."

"That she-cat needs to learn how to be social," Cherrytail sighed, shaking her head. "She has it in her head that no one her elder is worth her time. It's endearing but annoying at the same time."

Hawkkit nodded in agreement amusedly.

"I can go fetch her," Petalnose offered from where she had almost finished grooming Firekit.

"Thank you." Cherrytail dipped her head to her friend. "I owe you one."

"No you don't!" The gray she-cat shook her head. "I know what it is like to have kits. Thank Starclan I only had two, though. I'd never be able to do what you do with four."

"Sometimes, I wonder as well."

"Mom!" Featherkit complained as Petalnose strode off to find their sister. "Stop making me look bad! I need to make sure I have a good reputation for my ceremony!"

"You already ruin it yourself," Hawkkit snorted, and Featherkit snarled, launching herself to attack, but only found thin air as Brambleclaw drug her away by the scruff of her neck. The brown-and-white she-kit's ears flattened in embarrassment. "And my point is proven."

"Mouse-brain."

"Thistle-heart!"

"Stop it, you two!" Firekit pleaded. "Come on, it's our apprentice ceremony! Can't you be nice for once?"

"He has a point," Cherrytail nodded as Brambleclaw set Featherkit down. "Be nice, at least until the ceremony is over, alright?"

"I'll be nice if she's nice," Hawkkit snorted. Featherkit hissed, but said nothing as Brambleclaw cuffed her gently over the ear. A flicker of fear flashed off of his pelt, and Hawkkit frowned. Why would his father be afraid? Today was the biggest day of his life!

"All cats who are old enough to catch their own prey, please gather around the Rockpile for a clan meeting!"

Leafstar's commanding new wrenched Hawkkit out of his thoughts. "That's our cue! Come on!" He shouted, bounding to the Rockpile, Featherkit hot on his heels.

As they ran, Hawkkit caught sight of Tawnykit, who was racing towards them with a frantic look in her eye. She skidded to stop once she reached them.

"I'm sorry!" She gasped, amber eyes wide as she wanted for breath. "I didn't know... the ceremony was so soon!"

"You should have been with your family either way," Cherrytail scolded her daughter. "It's your last day as a kit! At least _try_ to enjoy it."

"Sorry," Tawnykit muttered, bowing her head. Brambleclaw gave his mate a knowing look.

"Who are we to tell her what to do? She's practically an apprentice now." He flicked his tail. "It's alright, as long as you do try to spend time with us more. Family is one of the most precious parts of our lives, Tawnykit."

Hawkkit blinked. Most precious part? He could never see Featherkit as anything more than annoying.

"Come on, we can't be late!" Firekit interrupted. "I need to know who my mentor will be!"

The family of six set off again, Featherkit and Hawkkit still in the lead as they finally skidded to halt in front of Leafstar. His heart beat wildly in his chest. Finally! He could finally start his training to become a warrior!

As Cherrytail hurriedly began grooming Tawnykit and the last several cats had sat down around the Rockpile, Leafstar began.

"Skyclan, we have grown exceedingly strong in the days since we were reformed, and today is the day we become even stronger!" She mewed, her light amber eyes alight with pride and purpose. "Today we will perform one of my favorite ceremonies. Brambleclaw and Cherrytail's kits have reached six moons of age, and now, they are old enough to be apprenticed."

She bounded down the rock just as Tawnykit frantically scampered down to Hawkkit's side, sending him a look of relief and slight embarrassment.

Leafstar turned to Firekit first.

"Firekit, you have reached the age of six moons, and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day on, until you receive your warrior name, you will be known as Firepaw. Your mentor will be Nettlesplash, and I know he will pass down all he knows on to you."

Firepaw seemed to almost vibrate with excitement as the light brown warrior strode up to him.

"Nettlesplash, it is time you've received your own apprentice. You've received excellent training under Bouncefire, and have shown yourself to be a courageous and compassionate warrior. You will be Firepaw's mentor, and I expect you to pass on all you know to him."

Hawkkit's brother bounced up to meet Nettlesplash's nose, almost having to stand on his hind legs to do so due to his small size.

"You are going to be the best warrior the gorge has ever seen," the light brown tom murmured to him.

Leafstar's voice drug Hawkkit back to attention. Would he be next?

"Featherkit, you have also reached six moons of age. From this time on, your name will be Featherpaw. Your mentor will be Rockshade, and I hope he will pass down all he knows to you. Rockshade," The black tom strode forward, almost as excited as his new apprentice. "It is high time that you receive your first apprentice. Cherrytail has taught you to be one of the best hunters in the clan, and I hope you will do the same with her daughter."

The two touched noses, almost knocking Hawkkit off of his feet with their combined joy and energy. _Oh boy, _he couldn't help but think. _He's going to make Featherpaw even worse now._

"Tawnykit, you are now six moons old. From this day on, you will be known as Tawnypaw. Your mentor will be Echosong, to be our newest medicine cat. I have the utmost confidence she will teach you everything you know."

"She already has!" Juniperpaw's voice rang out from the crowd. Simultaneous glares from Brambleclaw, Cherrytail, Leafstar, and Brackenfall silenced him almost immediately, and he ducked his head as Tawnypaw flushed under her fur, though an undercurrent of pride flecked her humility.

"Echosong, you have learned from from the best medicine cats Starclan has to offer, and we look forward to you sharing your secrets with Tawnypaw." Leafstar's eyes twinkled with a hidden mirth that caused Echosong to look to the sky as she walked forwards. She and Tawnypaw touched noses, and sat down next to each other.

Hawkkit shivered. He was now the only one left in front of Leafstar.

"Hawkkit," Leafstar looked him square in the eye. "As with your siblings, you have reached six moons of age. From this moment on, you shall be known as Hawkpaw." She paused for a moment, and Hawkpaw sucked in a breath of trepidation. "Hawkpaw, _I _will be your mentor. It has been far too long since I have last had an apprentice, and I hope I will be able to pass on everything Firestar and Sandstorm taught me to you."

Hawkpaw gasped as Leafstar strode up to him, and it took a moment for him to realise that he was supposed to touch noses with his leader and now mentor. He was in shock. He was to be Leafstar's _apprentice_? A flare of jealousy erupted from Featherpaw's pelt, but he ignored it, choosing to instead savor the moment as he touched noses with Leafstar.

Around them, the meeting began to disperse, and while a couple cats gave their congratulations to him, Hawkpaw wasn't listening.

_I'm Leafstar's apprentice! I'm going to be the greatest warrior the clan has ever seen!_

However, a cold wind suddenly buffeted him, causing the tom to blink. It was early new-leaf, why was there a cold breeze?

Abruptly, an unfamiliar voice murmured in his ear, making him start.

_Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path._


	4. Chapter 3

**...**

**Would you believe me if I said that I completely forgot to update this story?**

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**Chapter 3:**

_What?_

Featherpaw was in shock, staring at her brother, Hawkpaw. He was to be Leafstar's _apprentice_? Part of her knew she should be happy for her littermate, but she felt a red-hot pang of jealousy curl in her stomach instead. As the clan chanted their names, she could practically feel Cherrytail and Brambleclaw's pride for him. Not her. Him.

She turned to send a dirty look to Hawkpaw, but froze when she did, part of her jealousy fading away.

Hawkpaw just stood, staring at the ground in a sort of shock, amber eyes wide as if he was seeing dirt for the first time. Featherpaw frowned, watching as Tawnypaw nudged him, causing the brown tabby to start and reassure her. Why was he acting like that? Wouldn't he be gloating in her face like he usually did?

"Featherpaw!"

The brown-and-white she-cat started as she turned to Rockshade, who was giving her an odd look.

"Aren't you listening?" He questioned. "I just asked if you wanted to go and see the territory."

"Oh, yes!" She exclaimed, forcing any thought of Hawkpaw out of her mind. This was her time, not his. She wasn't going to let him ruin her first impression on her mentor! "Where are we going?" She jumped up to her feet.

"I was going to show you our borders first," Rockshade mewed, walking down the gorge and towards the river. "So you don't accidentally stray into any rogue nests or such. It's important to know where and where not we hold sway. Got that? No crossing the borders unless a warrior is with you."

"If you say so." Featherpaw was already mentally making a plan to sneak outside of the territory in a night or two. Once she got a layout of the territory and the sleeping patterns of her new denmates, it would be easy.

"Follow me." Rockshade craned his head to a fallen tree that branched out over the river, which served as the bottom entrance to the camp. Featherpaw had never gone on it and made it to the other side before (not to say she hadn't tried; Cherrytail had eyes like a hawk). He made a small jump to get on top, waiting as Featherpaw struggled for a moment with her smaller size to do the same.

"Aren't Hawkpaw and Firepaw going to come with us?" She asked when she made it, trying not to focus on the rushing river below her. Rockshade shook his head as they began to slowly walk across the huge tree.

"No," he mewed. "Usually the mentors show the territory on their own. I expect Leafstar and Nettlesplash will have them either go a different route or show them some basic battle and hunting stances. I thought we'd go this way since that's what Cherrytail did with me."

"Cool!" Featherpaw mewed, leaping off the rock and onto solid ground. "Where are we going first?"

"To the Pine Groves," Her mentor responded. "On our border—" he pointed his tail towards the rising sun. "In that direction. Very good for hunting squirrels, but we'll touch on that on a later date."

Featherpaw nodded, and followed her mentor into the forest for the first time.

The day began to blur together after they reached the border, patrolling and remarking it. Rockshade was extremely enthusiastic about showing her every landmark they came across, and no matter how she tried to remember them all, they all just seemed to swarm like bees around her brain. The Pine Groves to the rising sun were good for squirrels… streams could sweep away an unsuspecting apprentice when in the newleaf flood… even the tree where the legendary Firestar had set the first marker for Skyclan's territory. Though it was well inside Skyclan's current borders, Rockshade had made sure to show it to her. By the time the sun began to set, she was bone tired and very hungry.

Finally, the gorge began to pull into sight again. Featherpaw couldn't help but give out a sigh of relief. The day had been busy, but extremely fun as well. For the first time, she didn't have to banter with Hawkpaw, deal with Tawnypaw's sarcasm, or have to listen to Firepaw whining. It was nice, and Rockshade made it even better with his endless supply of jokes and fun facts. He even let her watch him catch a sparrow for them to share at sunhigh. She was still jealous of Hawkpaw for getting Leafstar, but Rockshade wasn't half bad either.

"Tired, Featherpaw?" Rockshade questioned as they pulled into camp. This time, they were coming in the opposite side of the way they had exited, down a steep, rocky path. "You haven't said a word for the last hour, at least."

"Sorry," Featherpaw's jaws parted into a yawn involuntarily. " 'M fine. Just a lot to take in, but I'm getting it."

The black tom chuckled. "Better than me. On my first day out of camp, Cherrytail was practically dragging me back in, I was so tired."

Featherpaw laughed. "Don't worry, I have bones of rock!"

In that moment, she tripped over a stray pebble and fell flat on her face.

Rockshade burst into laughter as Featherpaw burned under her pelt. She sat up almost immediately and began to self-consciously groom herself. What an embarrassment! She growled a little bit as her mentor showed no sign of stopping after a couple heartbeats.

"Oh, it's not _that_ funny," she muttered. Rockshade shook his head, trying to stifle himself.

"That's what you think. Bouncefire pulled the same stunt when we were apprentices, although he was older by then."

Featherpaw snorted and pushed ahead of her mentor. Below them, the camp seemed to be in a bit of a commotion, and she tilted her head.

"Hey, Rockshade, what's going on?"

Her mentor's voice sounded behind her. "I'm not sure, actually. Why don't we get down there and find out what's happening?"

Featherpaw nodded, bounding down at a much faster rate, pebbles spraying behind her as she jumped down into camp. Looking around, she noticed Cherrytail, Clovertail, and Plumwillow sitting together as they watched the kits. With a jolt of mild surprise, she noted Rustlekit, Thrushkit, and Twigkit were all awake now, toddling around the camp with wide eyes while Violetkit was proudly pointing out the few landmarks she had learned during the day. Ashenkit, Owlkit, and Flightkit were all playfighting in a bundle of dark gray, light gray, and brown. Birdpaw, Honeypaw, and Sandypaw were crouched over a mouse and a large squirrel, chatting happily. Featherpaw made a mental note to talk to Birdpaw about her apprentice ceremony later. Hollypaw, Ebonyclaw, and Sparrowpelt were grouped together as well, while Sharpclaw and Nightheart sat apart from the group, watching the camp silently.

Her eyes caught with her deputy's for a moment, and she started at the amount of hatred and pain she saw in them. Startled, she wrenched her gaze away, feeling surprised and a bit naked under his piercing glare.

"You alright, Featherpaw?"

She whipped around to face Hawkpaw, who tilted his head. She blinked in confusion, and he elaborated.

"You felt afraid for a moment. And exposed."

The brown-and-white she-cat rolled her eyes. Her brother always had an uncanny ability to tell exactly what she was feeling at any given moment, no matter if she showed it physically or not. For Starclan's sake, he could sometimes tell when she was out of sight!

"It's nothing," she muttered. "How was your day with Leafstar?"

"Oh, it was great!" Hawkpaw exclaimed. Featherpaw instantly felt that she had steered the conversation in the wrong direction. "Leafstar took me around the gorge and we got within a tail-length of the Twolegplace! She showed me some basic hunting moves and we ended up bumping into Billystorm's border patrol, so we went with them for the rest of the day, and I got to hang out with Brambleclaw and Juniperpaw. We came back in time for sun high, and then we ended up staying for the rest of the afternoon. Things were a bit busy."

"Busy?"

"Remember the rogues Birdpaw told us about? They came back, and Billystorm and Creekfeather tracked their scents to the end of the gorge, so Leafstar had to talk with them about it. Not only that, but Mintfur went into labor soon after we left. Firepaw hasn't even been able to leave camp all day, apparently, so Nettlesplash could stay with his mate."

"Kits? Now?" Featherpaw snorted. "Two warriors, four apprentices, and now kits in two days. What's next? Ten rogues want to join the clan?"

Hawkpaw laughed. "You can say that again. Want to see the kits? They're really cute and I think Nettlesplash will let you see them."

"Sure, why not?" She shrugged. Personally, she didn't like kits all that much, but hey, soon they'd be apprentices. Maybe she'd be a warrior by then and get to mentor one.

Hawkpaw grinned and bounded up to the caves where the nursery was situated. Featherpaw followed her brother, and came up to the bramble-covered cave. Standing 'guard' was Tawnypaw, looking even more exhausted than she and Hawkpaw were, fur ruffled and slightly clumped. She had rested her head on her paws, but raised it as her littermates came into sight.

"Coming to see the kits?" She questioned. "Echosong and Nettlesplash are still inside, but I'm sure you can sneak a peek. They're really cute."

"Did you help with the birth?" Hawkpaw asked suddenly, leaning forwards. "Since you're an apprentice now?"

Tawnypaw shook her head. "Of course not! I watched, and helped Echosong fetch herbs, but she did most of the work."

"Cool!" Hawkpaw grinned. Featherpaw shouldered past him, brushing past the protective brambles to enter the cave.

The air was thick with the scent of milk. Echosong was looking over several herbs which she was certain Tawnypaw could name off of the top of her head. Nettlesplash was curled around Mintfur, the two mates watching their two new kits at the new mother's belly lovingly.

"Ah, Featherpaw," Mintfur murmured tiredly. "You're here to see the kits? Your siblings have already come."

"I just got back from exploring the territory." Featherpaw flicked an ear. "What are their names?"

Mintfur placed her tail gently on one of the kits, a dark gray tom with a lighter splotch on his side. "That's Shadekit." She moved the tip to a black she-kit with lighter gray stripes along her tail. "And Tadpolekit. Aren't they precious?"

"I—yes," Featherpaw nodded, swallowing the sarcastic remark that she usually would've given. "They are a bit cute."

Mintfur laughed softly. "Classic Featherpaw," she murmured in a teasing tone. Featherpaw just shook her head. "Only a day out of the nursery and she never wants to return. Were we that bad?" She turned to Nettlesplash for the last question.

"Worse," Echosong interrupted, padding towards them with several leaves in her mouth. "Your mentor could barely get you back into the apprentice's den your first day out, Mintfur, and don't even get me started on you, Nettlesplash."

Said tom spluttered and tried to defend himself, and Featherpaw turned to leave the den while they were distracted. Exiting the den, she found Tawnypaw tiredly listening to Hawkpaw talk to her about his day.

"How were the kits?" Her sister questioned, tilting her head as she came into sight. "They're so cute, right? Absolutely adorable!"

"They're alright," Featherpaw shrugged, sitting down.

"Well, maybe we could mentor them!" Hawkpaw suggested. "If we work hard enough we could become warriors quicker, and then maybe Leafstar would give one of them to us soon after. It's happened before. Which kit would you mentor? I kinda like Shadekit. He looks tough."

"That was when Skyclan consisted of, like, ten cats," Tawnypaw pointed out. Hawkpaw moved to contradict her, but was cut off by his growling belly.

Featherpaw chuckled, stretching. "Who's up for dinner?" She mewed. "I could really go for some shrew right now."

Tawnypaw nodded, while Hawkpaw drew a paw over his ear in embarrassment. The trio set off down to the fresh-kill pile, which had been stocked high for the evening meal.

As they made their way down, the daylight warriors (plus one apprentice) began their ascent to the top of the gorge and to their twoleg nests. Hawkpaw called out a "good night," but the others were a bit too tired to really try to say much. Once they were at the pile, Featherpaw caught sight of a large shrew near the top. Grinning, she pulled it off, while Hawkpaw grabbed a rabbit—probably to share with Tawnypaw. Featherpaw glanced around, trying to find a good place to sit, when she caught sight of Firepaw waving his tail at them, alone in a secluded area by a pile of rocks. Checking to make sure that there were no available spots elsewhere, she motioned to her littermates to sit with him.

"How was your guys' first day?" He asked. Hawkpaw opened his mouth to reply, but Tawnypaw, thank Starclan, shoved her tail into his mouth before he could say anything.

"Tiring," Featherpaw sighed. "I never knew our territory was so big. There's so much to remember!"

"Don't even get me started on how much you have to remember as a medicine cat," Tawnypaw muttered.

"Lucky," Firepaw muttered, looking slightly envious. "Since Mintfur started kitting, I was cleaning out the elder's den all day. I barely made out it of camp."

Even Featherpaw had to wince in sympathy. All of them, even Firepaw, had been anxiously waiting for their apprenticeship for moons, and their brother had gotten stuck with cleaning due to plain bad luck.

However, the light ginger tom looked slightly uncomfortable at the attention, and motioned to Featherpaw's shrew.

"Mind if I share with you?" he asked. "I haven't eaten yet."

Nodding, Featherpaw moved the shrew over, and let Firepaw take the first bite. The four littermates then quieted as they ate. The sun continued to set, sending rays of golden light across the gorge's rocky walls.

"You know," Hawkpaw muttered as he gulped down some of the last remains of rabbit. "Something weird happened during my apprentice ceremony."

"Mm?" Tawnypaw hummed while Firepaw raised his head in curiousity.

"Is it being apprenticed to our _great_ leader?" Featherpaw questioned, rolling her eyes. "Because we already know that, mouse-brain."

"No!" Hawkpaw sounded offended. "It was something else. While we were being cheered at, I heard a weird voice in my ear. Did anyone else?"

Featherpaw stared at her brother as if he had grown a second head.

"I guess not. I didn't recognize it, and it scared the fur right off of me. Went something like: _Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path._ Weird, right?"

Tawnypaw laughed outright. "You just ate too much fresh-kill or something. Honestly, hearing voices. Just weird. You sure you aren't crazy?"

"Quite," Hawkpaw responded curtly.

"Why would he be hearing voices, though?" Firepaw questioned. "None of us heard anything."

"Yeah, it's called hearing voices in your head," Featherpaw rebutted. Firepaw quieted. Tawnypaw shook her head.

"Don't be so mean, Featherpaw," Firepaw spoke again. "Everyone should be given the benefit of doubt."

Featherpaw snorted, shaking her head. Hawkpaw was silent, now looking a bit contemplative as he thought.

"There you four are!" The littermates blinked almost in unison, turning to see Cherrytail, Brambleclaw at her side, striding up to them. Their mother purred at the sight of her kits, making Featherpaw wince. They were apprentices now!

"How was your first day?" Brambleclaw asked, looking almost as excited as if it was if his own first day out.

"Awesome," Hawkpaw purred, a yawn interrupting anything else he was planning on saying.

"The elders were nice," Firepaw shrugged. "But I didn't do much else. Nettlesplash's kits are cute, at least."

Brambleclaw purred, drawing his tail over Firepaw's shoulder. "Nettlesplash asked me to show you the territory tomorrow, by the way. He's very sorry to have made you wait."

"He did?!" Firepaw exclaimed, face lighting up. "You'll be showing me the territory?"

"Unless you want someone else to."

"N-no, I'm fine! You're fine!"

"Why don't you all get to bed?" Cherrytail suggested, looking up at the rapidly darkening sky. "Most of us are getting ready to call it a day as well."

"That sounds like the best idea since fresh-kill." Tawnypaw spoke before Featherpaw could protest. She stood, picking up the remains of her meal and moving to bury it. Hawkpaw and Firepaw stood up as well. Sighing, Featherpaw followed suit, shaking out her pelt as she followed her siblings to the apprentices den, saying their good nights to their parents as they did so. Tawnypaw followed the two warriors, in the general direction of the medicine den.

"Where do you think we'll be sleeping?" Hawkpaw mused. Featherpaw shrugged.

"I could care less, as long as I have a nest," she replied, entering the den.

Already, Birdpaw and Juniperpaw were inside. The cream tom lifted his head sleepily as the former purred at their presence.

"We made some nests for you over there," Birdpaw mewed, pointing her tail at said items. "Who are your mentors? You promised to tell me."

"Tawnypaw got Echosong, of course," Featherpaw shrugged, moving towards her nest. "Firepaw has Nettlesplash, I got Rockshade, and Hawkpaw was _blessed_ with Leafstar." It was hard not to keep the jealousy out of her mew.

"Really?" Juniperpaw mumbled into his moss. "I guess we should all hail the leader's apprentice, then. All hail Hawkpaw. Woo."

"Well, you all have wonderful warriors as mentors," Birdpaw put in, ignoring her denmate. "Rockshade is one of the best hunters in the clan, and Nettlesplash is one of the kindest. Good luck to all of you. You're going to need it."

"Whatever," Featherpaw muttered, too tired to exchange in her usual pleasantries. Not even bothering to say good night, she curled up in a random nest. She was asleep before her head even hit the moss.

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**I'll do my best to keep to the updating schedule now, haha. Please review, as I've put a year into this story and would love to know what you think. Anyone have a favorite character yet?**


	5. Chapter 4

**Since I might not be online on Friday, I figured I better post the next chapter today. Thank you for your support!**

**Reviews:**

**Kuroimori**—Thank you! I hope you like this chapter as well :-)

**Embers**—Nice to see you here! I'm glad you like Brambleclaw and Skyclan too; they're my favorite part of the Warriors series and I just don't see them much in the fandom. OotS, for me, was a series that had a whole lot of potential and just was executed poorly. There were some parts I really liked and others that fell flat. I'm hoping by adding in some new characters, Skyclan itself, and a couple VoS plot points (finally read up to Shattered Sky, and ohoho I have some ideas), I can make it a bit better.

**OC Call:** **I'm looking for some OCs to fit into the second and third books of **_**Fire and Tiger**_**, titled **_**Divided Future**_ **and** _**The River's Path**_**, the former of which I'm currently working on. I'm specifically looking for rogues, including a queen with kits and several regular cats. The form will be on my profile, and I prefer submissions through PM, though it can be through review if you don't have an account or just really want to. I figured it's time I reward you for getting this far in the story :-).**

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**Chapter 4:**

Everything was quiet. A gentle breeze waved through the forest, making the leaves rustle in the trees.

Hawkpaw crouched, ears angled as he tracked the prey before him. It was a large rabbit, big enough to feed three or four cats. If he caught this, he'd be recognised for sure! Leafstar would be so proud!

The rabbit was munching on its food, too focused on it to notice the young tom creeping up on it. Hawkpaw bunched his muscles, preparing to pounce. He was actually going to catch it!

Suddenly, a twig broke, and the rabbit's head shot up and it scrambled away. Hawkpaw gave a cry of distress and bounded after it, but it was too late. It was gone. Hissing, he whipped around to where the disturbing noise that had scared off the rabbit, unsheathing his claws. Whoever had made him lose that prey was going to get it!

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Are all Skyclan apprentices such bad stalkers?"

Hawkpaw started, crouching down in what he hoped was some sort of battle stance as a cat emerged from the brush. He had mottled tabby gray fur, with piercing blue eyes. Stars speckled his fur.

"I was hunting just fine, thank you very much," He replied, standing up. The tom wasn't attacking him, and he held an air of authority around him that made him want to stand. Suddenly, an abrupt realisation came over him. "Wait a minute… Am I dreaming?"

The tom's whiskers twitched. "What do you think?" He challenged. "Use your head, kit."

Hawkpaw frowned. "I get it, alright? Who are you?"

"You may call me Jayfeather," the gray tom replied. "And no, I am not a figment of your imagination." More under his breath, he added: "Was I this idiotic as an apprentice?"

Hawkpaw frowned, sitting down as he tried to piece this together. He was certainly dreaming, since the last thing he remembered was going to bed with the other apprentices. Then he ended up here, with a starry tom bombarding him with questions.

"Are you a Starclan cat?" He burst, eyes wide. Didn't they only come to medicine cats and leaders? But then again, that was the only solution he could think of. What else could there be? His mind was whirling, and on instinct, he reached out to the tom.

Jayfeather's mind was awash with different emotions. A sense of duty, sadness, some emotion he couldn't identify, and a streak of jealousy littered his mind. Curious as to whether this cat was real or not, he pushed deeper than he usually did, past just grazing the surface, and then:

"_Make it count, Icepaw."_

_Blood. Pain. He couldn't see, but his four other senses were overloaded with information. Cats clawing on him, blood dripping off his pelt as he fought at least three enemies at once. A fiery determination flared inside of him, a sense of duty to his clan and to keep them safe. _

_A tom's voice rang through the fight._

"_Minnowtail! Get the apprentice!"_

"_NO!" He roared, and suddenly, there was light. He could see!_

_The sun was setting, sending cascades of golden beams across a river so large he could barely see the other side. Four cats surrounded him, and one was breaking off to race away. Feeling a renewal of strength, he thrust himself through the throng, fur ripping off his pelt to to create even more wounds. He tackled the she-cat, bowling her over, knowing he had to hold them off just long enough for Icepaw to escape—_

"GET OUT!"

And abruptly, he was wrenched away from the scene, thrust back into his own body with a bang. Hawkpaw gasped, stumbling on his paws, then falling onto his hindquarters.

He glanced up, more than a little horrified, to see Jayfeather shaking almost violently. His unsheathed claws tore at the ground, and his eyes fell on Hawkpaw, who curled into himself in a sudden fear.

"What in the Ancient's name…" the tabby tom ground out. He trailed off, then picked up again. "You will _never _do that again, understand?"

"I-I don't—" Hawkpaw's voice cracked, but he was cut off before he could continue.

"Do. You. Under. Stand," Jayfeather hissed. It suddenly dawned upon Hawkpaw that although he was the same size as the small tom, the starry cat was extremely intimidating.

"I understand," Hawkpaw whimpered, flattening his ears and lowering his head.

"Good." Jayfeather seemed to calm down slightly, his breathing slowing. "That's why I'm here to talk to you today, Hawkpaw. Because of _that_."

"Be-Because of what?" Hawkpaw echoed, crouching down submissively.

"_That_," Jayfeather hissed, ears flat. "You going into other cats' minds and messing around with them."

"Huh?" Hawkpaw still didn't fully get it. "You mean I need to stop sensing other people? Why?"

"Yes, that's what I meant," Jayfeather strode towards him. "Come on now, surely you've noticed that you're different from the other cats."

"I'm different?"

"For the Ancients' sake," Jayfeather hissed. "Yes, Hawkpaw. You are a very slow tom, you know that?"

"No I'm not!" He protested; however, a tendril of doubt began to whirl in his stomach. He had never really thought of his ability. Featherpaw would sometimes comment on how it was annoying, but… "Am I?"

"Yes, you are," Jayfeather sighed, padding forwards. "Hawkpaw, you have a very special gift that no other cat has. One you _shouldn't_ have."

Hawkpaw blinked, trying to figure everything out. He was different? Why?

"Why?" He questioned, echoing his thoughts.

"Now, that is a question for another time," Jayfeather snorted. "And no, don't ask why for that, either! Apprentices these days. You all never know when to shut up."

Hawkpaw frowned, scraping his claws against the ground, but silenced. Part of him wanted to delve back into Jayfeather's mind, but he refrained, not wanting to risk Starclan's wrath.

"What am I supposed to do with my 'power' then?" He finally spoke the biggest question on his mind. "It's not like I can really control what I do."

"Yes, you can," Jayfeather responded. "To an extent. For example, you had to try to get into my head, didn't you?"

Hawkpaw nodded, and Jayfeather flicked an ear.

"It should be obvious that you shouldn't be doing anything like that. And try to keep your powers private. It makes handling everything for me a lot easier."

"I…" Hawkpaw frowned, but dipped his head slowly nonetheless. "I will, but I don't get why. Why should I have to hide my powers?"

Jayfeather frowned suddenly. "We don't have time. Listen." He abruptly leaned in close to Hawkpaw, voice changing as he did so, as if a dozen cats were speaking at once. "Remember: _Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path._"

"Can't you just give me a straight answer?" Hawkpaw burst, impatience overflowing. However, he received no reply, and Jayfeather's form suddenly faded into the wind.

"_Hawkpaw…"_

The brown tabby looked around. The scene of the forest he had been dreaming in was rapidly falling apart into blackness. He looked around to try and find the source of who had called to him.

"What? Who's there?"

"_Hawkpaw! C'mon, it's time to get up!"_

* * *

Hawkpaw gasped suddenly, amber eyes flying open as he scrambled in his nest, trying to find his bearings. His vision fell into place, and he started to calm when he confirmed that he was, indeed, in his own nest. Leaning over him was Birdpaw, her black pelt still unkempt from sleep.

"Wha?" He questioned, parting his lips in a yawn. "What is it? What's happened?"

Birdpaw nudged him with her paw. "Dawn patrol," she whispered. "And be quiet! Everyone else is still asleep."

"Dawn patrol?" Hawkpaw echoed. His mind was still reeling over the contents of his dream. Had he seriously just been visited by a Starclan cat? Who was Jayfeather, anyways?

"Yes, mouse-brain." Birdpaw rolled her eyes good-naturedly. "One of the _many_ chores that comes with being an apprentice. Come on, we can't keep Leafstar waiting."

"I'm coming." The brown tabby stood up and stretched, shaking off a couple scraps of moss from his fur.

Birdpaw nodded, waiting patiently as Hawkpaw got out of his nest. Stepping carefully to avoid Honeypaw's splayed paws and Firepaw's tail, he fluffed out his fur as a cold early morning gust of air drew the air out of him. Down at the bottom of the gorge, Sharpclaw, Leafstar, Shrewtooth, and Bouncefire were conversing quietly.

"I got Hawkpaw," Birdpaw called to the group of four, jumping down to them. Hawkpaw hurried to follow her.

"Hawkpaw," Leafstar nodded pleasantly. "Sleep well?"

The brown tabby's mind blanked for a moment. Should he tell his mentor and leader of his dream?

_No, _a voice in the back of his mind murmured. _Not here. Jayfeather said to keep it a secret._

"It was alright," He finally replied.

Bouncefire yawned, rolling his shoulders. "Let's get going. I'm still trying to wake up; Honeypaw has an assessment today."

Leafstar nodded in understanding. "I'll lead. You'll set the rest of the patrols, Sharpclaw?"

The ginger tom nodded curtly, and Hawkpaw felt the hairs rise on his spine as he felt his deputy's gaze rake across him. A stab of dislike and jealousy sparked off of his pelt, and Hawkpaw hurried to move next to Leafstar as they set out to the border. He would never get used to the Skyclan deputy. What did Leafstar see in him?

They passed the Rockpile as Leafstar lead the way out of camp. The rocky ground of the gorge soon turned into soft dirt as they passed into the forest. The group was silent for a while, too tired to really carry a conversation in the early morning air. The first border marks were set, and Hawkpaw made sure to study the territory he passed, wanting to memorize his territory as soon as possible so he could impress Leafstar.

"Hawkpaw," Said she-cat spoke suddenly, making him start. "Can you scent anything?"

The brown tabby frowned, then opened his mouth like he had seen the other warriors do, taking a deep breath and letting the scents of the forest enter.

"Um… cats, but they're stale, so last night's dusk patrol, maybe? And some mouse, and…" He frowned as an unfamiliar scent hit his tongue. It was sharp and tangy in a disgusting sort of way, making him twist his face in confusion and disgust. "Something else. I haven't smelled it before, but it's not good."

Leafstar nodded approvingly. "Good job for a first time. Birdpaw, what is the scent that Hawkpaw can't identify?"

The she-cat nodded and took a deep breath of her own. "Fox, Leafstar. Maybe a couple hours old."

"And how do we deal with foxes?" Shrewtooth put in, eyeing his apprentice approvingly.

"Avoid it for now, and send a patrol to deal with it later," Birdpaw recited easily. "And avoid the area until it's chased off. It's dangerous to take on a fox without preparation."

Hawkpaw filed away the information, pricking his ears for any sign of the fox. Bouncefire flicked his tail on him gently as he did so.

"You don't need to worry yet, Hawkpaw," he reassured. "There aren't any new scents of fox around, so it's more likely deeper in the territory and farther away from us."

"It's good to be on alert, though," Shrewtooth added. He still seemed to still be on guard, and prickles of fear spiked off his pelt every now and again. "Foxes are sly creatures. They look like a dog but act like a cat."

"Both of you are correct," Leafstar commended the two warriors. "Let's keep on going. We have a ways to go before we can go back to camp."

"Lead the way, Leafstar." Shrewtooth nodded, and they moved again, walking along the border.

The sun rose steadily up the horizon, elongating the shadows of the trees around them as light began to filter through the trees. The whole time Hawkpaw just couldn't get his dream about Jayfeather out of his head. And more than that, he had three essential questions:

Why did he have this 'power'?

Why shouldn't he tell anyone about it?

And who in Starclan's name _was_ Jayfeather? He had never heard the name before, not from Patchfoot's stories nor the clan. Why was it some unknown tom had visited him, and not Skywatcher or some other famous Starclan cat?

Those questions whirled in Hawkpaw's mind, even as he tried to stay focused on the patrol at hand. As such, when Leafstar suddenly stopped, he had to scramble to not bump into her. Frowning, he righted himself and moved around her with Birdpaw by his side, wanting to see what he had missed.

Almost at once, he was assaulted with a horrible smell, causing him to wrinkle his nose. Bouncefire swore as they saw what was before them.

"Starclan's name…" the ginger tom muttered. "Who did this?"

It was several small piles of the remnants of prey, dumped by the trunk of a tree just inside the border. Hawkpaw gagged slightly and he glimpsed Birdpaw having to look away. He couldn't even tell what species the prey had been, they were so torn apart and rotten. Leafstar moved in front of him after a moment, blocking his view of the scene.

"This was recent," she announced. "Shrewtooth, Birdpaw, try to track the rogues. If you spot them, don't engage if you don't have to; report back as soon as you see anyone. Bouncefire, can you dispose of this, please? Hawkpaw, come with me, we can finish the patrol."

Shrewtooth nodded, hissing quietly to himself. "This is the third time this moon!"

Hawkpaw blinked, surprised. The third time? Birdpaw had mentioned rogue scents before, but not anything to this extent. An uneasy feeling rose in his belly as he followed Leafstar away from the scene and further along the border. A short silence feel between them as they left the earshot of their clanmates.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," the brown-and-cream leader muttered. "We've been having problems with some mischievous rogues recently. I didn't want keep you there too long in case they were still around. You haven't had any battle training yet."

Hawkpaw couldn't help but bristle slightly at the notion of being called weak. He could defend himself! However, he kept his mouth shut as he felt Leafstar's sincerity and worry for him through the air.

"Shrewtooth said that this wasn't the first time something like this has happened," he questioned. "What did he mean by that?"

Leafstar stopped briefly to set a marker. "We've had this happen to us on several occasions. Probably it's just some young rogues or kittypets playing some kind of prank. Nevertheless, we need to be careful. Just in case they have malicious intentions."

Hawkpaw nodded, but cocked his head, slightly confused. "But can't rogues join the clan? I mean, I remember when Nightheart, Juniperpaw, and Brackenfall joined the clan, and Hollypaw and Lakestream are new daylight warriors. Why would they join but other cats like these do such bad stuff?"

"Some cats just don't like living and working with other cats in the kind of ordered structure," the elder she-cat flicked an ear. "And that's fine. We should respect them. But other cats, they just don't understand why cats should live together, so they think it's funny to treat us like this."

"Why don't we just chase them off of our territory?"

"They don't know what they're doing, Hawkpaw. Many of them simply just don't know any better. If possible, we'll try to talk to them peacefully. If they don't back down, _then_ we will attack."

Hawkpaw nodded, trying to understand what his mentor. His mind flitted back to his dream. Should he tell Leafstar about this 'Jayfeather?'

_Try to keep your powers private. It makes handling everything for me a lot easier._

The gray tom's voice echoed in his ears, and he decided to keep his mouth shut. Just for now.

* * *

Hawkpaw was sore everywhere. The late afternoon sunlight warmed his dark tabby fur as he laid out on the rocks. The day had been the busiest he had ever experienced. After the dawn patrol, he had gone hunting with Leafstar, Featherpaw, and Rockshade for the morning. It'd taken almost until sunhigh, but had managed to catch an old shrew (he still had a warm feeling in his belly when he thought about it). After a quick meal, he'd had battle training with Hollypaw and Patchfoot, learning the basics of fighting. His body _still_ hurt from where Hollypaw had pounded him into the ground round after round. And he was a daylight apprentice!

Still, though, he was more than happy to have the day over with. Stretching over the rocks, he yawned lazily as he watched Harveymoon and Macgyver teach Rustlekit and Twigkit mossball near the nursery. By the fresh-kill pile, Tinycloud, Sagenose, and Creekfeather were talking cheerfully over a mouse and rabbit.

"How was your day?" Hawkpaw looked up to see Tawnypaw padding over to him, smelling sharply of lavender. He wrinkled his nose.

"You smell," He muttered. "And yeah, it was pretty cool. I caught a shrew this morning with Leafstar. Where did you get that stench?"

Tawnypaw flicked an ear self-consciously. "Is it really that bad?" she murmured. "Echosong took me to see the territory, and we ended up gathering borage for Mintfur. I fell into a lavender patch while doing so."

Hawkpaw chuckled, causing Tawnypaw to cuff him over the ear. He somber, though, as his dream came back to mind. It hadn't gone away all day, and kept on making him look over his shoulder, as if he was being watched.

He could tell her, right? He had already told her and his littermates that weird sentence he had heard during his ceremony. Why not this?

_Oh, for Starclan's sake! I'll just tell her!_

"Have you ever heard of a cat named Jayfeather?" He blurted out. Tawnypaw blinked, giving him a confused look.

"No…" she replied. "Do you mean Creekfeather?"

"No," he shook his head. "_Jay_feather. Prefix Jay. I had a weird dream about him last night."

"Too much fresh-kill?"

"No! You were with me, Tawnypaw. We shared that rabbit, remember?"

"Oh, yeah. What was this dream about?"

"It started off normal. I was hunting a rabbit, but then he appeared and scared it off. He started going on about 'powers' and the like, and how I had one."

Tawnypaw blinked, skepticism tinged with curiosity and surprise flickering off of her. "You mean, like how you can always seem to tell how others are feeling? We always thought you were a bit off the deep end."

"Hey!" Hawkpaw exclaimed. Fear prickled in his belly. His siblings thought he was crazy? Did anyone else? "Was it that obvious?"

"Not really. Firepaw, Featherpaw, and I only noticed because we were around you all the time. Cherrytail and Brambleclaw, maybe, I don't know. It was all in the little things. So, to recap, you had a weird dream cat tell you you had powers."

Her sarcastic flair was not missed, and Hawkpaw flexed his claws.

"It's not like that, Tawnypaw! Well, kind of… not really, alright? He was _real_, I could tell!"

Disbelief was practically dripping from the air, causing Hawkpaw to scowl.

"Come on, I know you don't believe me! At least say that outright!"

Tawnypaw looked abashed, but before she could respond, a rather large mossball flew at her head. She blinked, surprised, as Ashenkit and Owlkit raced up to them, the latter gasping for breath.

"Sorry!" The gray tabby apologised, scooping up the mossball. Hawkpaw noted Flightkit following her littermates at a slower pace. "I hit the ball too hard. We were getting too into our game, I guess."

"It's fine," Tawnypaw purred, relief flooding off of her pelt. "How's your day been? It's been quiet without you waking up every other hour, Ashenkit!"

Said kit ducked her head in embarrassment, but laughed nonetheless. Flightkit flicked an ear as she reached the four.

"It's boring without you four," she complained. "All Ashenkit and Owlkit want to do is play mossball, and Violetkit, Twigkit, Rustlekit, and Thrushkit keep on getting under my paws. We can't even hang out in the nursery anymore; Mintfur won't let us in thanks to Tadpolekit and Shadekit."

"Aww, you love us, Flightkit, we know that!" Ashenkit exclaimed, licking her sister, who pulled away almost immediately.

"Thank you, Flightkit. I feel so appreciated righted right now," Owlkit deadpanned. Tawnypaw laughed.

"Here, I'll play with you guys, alright?" Tawnypaw offered, standing up. "Hawkpaw is really tired, but I can play."

The brown tabby blinked, surprised, but Tawnypaw sent him a look to stay quiet.

"Really?" Owlkit grinned, while Ashenkit laughed.

"Awesome!" She squealed, rushing off to the nursery. "Let's go!" Owlkit sped after her, not wanting to be left behind.

Tawnypaw looked at Hawkpaw, who stared back at her in shock. She didn't even want to hear him out…

"Just… forget about this Jayfeather guy," the tortoiseshell sighed. "I'll see you tomorrow."

And with a flick of her tail, she was gone, leaving Hawkpaw feeling sick to his stomach.


	6. Chapter 5

**Big thanks to Kuroimori for the OCs! They'll have their appearances in the next book. As always, please leave a review, follow, and perhaps even a favorite :-). Criticism is greatly appreciated!**

* * *

**Chapter 5:**

"She almost has you, Juniperpaw! Use the moves I taught you!"

Featherpaw watched the spar as front of her intensely as Brambleclaw shouted instructions at his apprentice, who was locked in a training spar with Honeypaw. The cream tom wriggled under Honeypaw's grip, eventually squeezing away by batting at her belly. He rolled away, and the two apprentices separated for a moment to catch their breath.

"Are you keeping up with them?" Rockshade asked, shooting his apprentice a sidelong glance. Featherpaw nodded.

"Well enough," she answered. _But I have no idea what they're doing half the time._

"Don't worry," the black tom purred. "Honeypaw's six moons ahead of you in training, Juniperpaw four. You don't have to know what they're doing, just watch their moves carefully."

"Honeypaw's already at six?!" Featherpaw exclaimed, surprised. Rockshade smiled knowingly while Bouncefire shot them a quieting look as Juniperpaw and Honeypaw launched at each other again. "She's been an apprentice for as long as I can remember. It's odd thinking of her, Birdpaw, and Sandypaw becoming warriors."

"They did become apprentices when you were very young," Rockshade conceded as Juniperpaw tackled Honeypaw. "They're nearing their warrior assessments, in fact."

"That's weird. The apprentice's den is going to feel empty once they're gone."

About three-quarters of a moon had passed since Featherpaw, Tawnypaw, Hawkpaw, and Firepaw had been apprenticed, and life in the clans had carried on as normal. Featherpaw herself had improved in leaps and bounds (Rockshade's words, not hers) in hunting, while Hawkpaw was better at fighting. Tawnypaw rarely even took the time to see them anymore, she was so busy (though sometimes she seemed to be avoiding her and Hawkpaw), and Firepaw was… well, Firepaw was Firepaw.

With nine apprentices in the clan, she was rarely alone. With such a big clan to protect and provide for, she always was learning one task or the other, or doing some other sort of chore. This morning, she was watching a training battle between Juniperpaw and Honeypaw. Though the she-cat had been training longer, Juniperpaw was older, thus leaving the two apprentices fairly evenly matched.

And now Honeypaw, Birdpaw, and Sandypaw were going to become warriors? It just felt weird, to think of not having Birdpaw's help while hunting or Honeypaw's tips during battle. She would even miss Sandypaw, even if he was almost as bad as Stormheart when it came to the size of his ego.

"Don't worry." Rockshade nudged her out of her thoughts. "It won't be like they're leaving forever. They'll just be across camp, in the warriors' den. Just a short walk away."

"I guess," she murmured, just as Honeypaw caught Juniperpaw in a stronghold.

"That's enough, you two," Brambleclaw called after a couple moments. "Juniperpaw, you lost. I thought I taught you to think ahead in battle!"

The cream tom grunted in annoyance as Honeypaw got off of him. He stood up, shaking the sand off of his pelt.

"I almost had her!" He complained as the light ginger she-cat purred in a mix of amusement and pleasure. "Just a couple more minutes, and—"

"You would still be in her grip," Brambleclaw interrupted the arrogant tom. "Come on, it's time to clean out the nursery."

Featherpaw snickered at the horrified look on her denmate's face, though they both would be suffering through the same chore. At least she would have a friend while doing it.

Bouncefire nodded approvingly at Honeypaw, who purred happily.

"Well, Honeypaw has a her hunting assessment next, so I guess we'll be off. Have a good day," the ginger tom spoke, nodding to the other four cats. He motioned to his apprentice, and they bounded down one of the side paths and into the forest. Brambleclaw flicked his tail as they left.

"How about you two go and change the moss in the nursery? Firepaw and Hawkpaw should have collected all of the moss already," he directed to his daughter and apprentice. "So all you two need to do is change it and get prey for the queens. Not too hard, is it?"

"Blergh," Juniperpaw stuck out his tongue, making Featherpaw chuckle. Brambleclaw shot them a warning look, however, shutting them up effectively.

"Don't be too hard on them," Rockshade shook his head, nudging Featherpaw with a paw. "Now it's time for you two to get to work. You can have the rest of the day off if you want."

"Really?!" the two exclaimed, and the black tom nodded. Featherpaw jumped to her feet, bounding past Juniperpaw excitedly.

"Come on!" She cried. "If we get this done quick, I'll be able to take an afternoon nap!"

The cream tom just smiled and leaped up to join her, scrabbling slightly on the rocks she had reached easily. Together, they padded ahead of their mentors and into camp, which was slightly empty, with most of the patrols having been sent out already. However, she could still see Sagenose and Sparrowpelt sharing a bird near the fresh-kill pile, which was now practically empty. Shrugging to herself, she bounded past them and towards the nursery, on the opposite side of camp.

Hawkpaw and Firepaw were already there, the latter scooping up the moss his brother was molding it into balls for them. The ginger apprentice glanced up at their arrival, ears perking up as he did so.

"Featherpaw! Juniperpaw!" He exclaimed. "You're here! We can leave now, Hawkpaw!"

"Wow. I feel _so _appreciated right now," Juniperpaw drawled.

Hawkpaw rolled his eyes. "Very funny," he replied, dropping the last ball of moss. "We haven't been able to train at all yet."

Featherpaw shrugged, turning away from her siblings and ducking into the nursery. Almost immediately, she was hit with the smell of milk and borage, making her wrinkle her nose uncomfortably.

"Featherpaw! Featherpaw! Are you here to play?"

The brown-and-white she-cat looked down to see a small gray kitten with a lighter splotch on his side bounce up to her. Barely a moon old, he pounced on her with kit-soft paws.

"You're getting bigger, Shadekit," she remarked, shaking off his attack easily. "It's been a little while."

"Don't forget me!" Another gray she-kit stumbled after her brother, looking as if she had just awoken. "Don't leave me out of any training!"

"I'm not here to train, Tadpolekit," Featherpaw glanced down at the two littermates. At the same time, her ears flicked backwards to catch the sounds of Juniperpaw entering after her. "Just cleaning out the den for you guys."

"Aww," The two kits chorused. Behind them, Mintfur padded up, licking the top of their heads lovingly.

"Go outside, you two," she purred. "Flightkit and Rustlekit know a few moves to teach you."

"Oh yeah!" Tadpolekit's tail shot up straight into the air. "C'mon Shadekit, Firepaw's been them a few battle techniques!"

The gray she-kit barely stopped to let Shadekit process what his sister had said before she sped off and out of the nursery.

"W-wait for me!" The small kitten exclaimed, toddling after her.

Mintfur sighed lovingly. "They've gotten so big so fast," she mewed, then beckoned with her tail. "Here, I'll help you with your chores. Anything to get these bones moving."

"Really?" Juniperpaw said. "Thank you!"

"No problem."

Featherpaw began scraping up the soiled moss, hissing to herself as she did so. She hated cleaning out the dens. However, Mintfur's help pushed the chore along, and soon they had gathered up all of the old moss. Juniperpaw lead the way out of the den, and they made their way down to the river. Featherpaw dropped the moss into the water, watching float away down the river.

"Glad that's over with," Juniperpaw rolled his shoulders, then stretched out his back, which cracked stiffly several times in response. "Starclan, Honeypaw's made me all sore!"

"She is a good fighter," Mintfur commented. "You both are pretty even. Don't take it too hard."

As they spoke, however, Featherpaw's eyes pulled themselves towards the forest. Some of the bushes were moving, even though there was no wind. She frowned, squinting at them in confusion.

Abruptly, a flash of light ginger fur exploded from the undergrowth, causing Featherpaw to shriek in surprise and almost fell into the river. The blur of fur—a cat, she realised with a rising horror—was streaked in blood as it raced towards the fallen tree, bounding over it as quickly as possible.

"What is it Fea—Oh, Starclan!" Mintfur exclaimed as the cat nearly collapsed on the side of the bridge closest to camp. "It's Honeypaw!"

Featherpaw gasped as she realized what the queen said was true. It was the apprentice she had seen only an hour ago, covered in blood and cuts and gasping for breath. She bounded forwards, worried.

"Honeypaw!" She exclaimed, licking her older denmate worriedly. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"Where's Bouncefire?" Juniperpaw echoed, for once sounding scared. Honeypaw looked up at them, terrified, but too winded to explain.

"What's going on?" All three of them turned to see Sparrowpelt's hunting patrol bounding towards them, heavily laden with prey. Behind the brown tabby were Sandypaw, Sagenose, and Seedtail (Featherpaw knew Seedtail quite well, actually; she was her parent's closest friend).

"Rogues!" Honeypaw gasped. "I was hunting near the Pine Groves with Bouncefire… they attacked out of nowhere… he told me to run and get help."

Sparrowpelt swore. "Juniperpaw! Go warn camp! The rest of you, with me!"

The cream tom nodded, and sprinted away towards camp. Sparrowpelt leaped on top of the fallen tree and began to cross, his patrol, dropping their prey on the ground, and Mintfur following. As Featherpaw passed Honeypaw, she caught Sandypaw murmuring to his sister.

"Don't worry, Honeypaw! Get back to camp; I'll chase these cats right out of our territory!"

Featherpaw spared no more time as she leapt onto the tree and crossed. Soon, they were racing through the forest, and she found herself hard pressed to keep up with the older warriors and apprentice. As she panted, Seedtail fell into step next to her.

"You alright?" She questioned softly. Unable to reply, Featherpaw nodded. "Be ready to fight when we get there. You may not have a chance to catch your breath."

Featherpaw gulped, nodding again. The duo fell silent and exchanged no more words as they ran, though Seedtail would send her a reassuring look every now and then. The leaves and twigs underpaw soon became pine needles, and the patrol slowed. Sparrowpelt sent a look to Sagenose, who raised his muzzle in the air and took a long breath. After a moment, his ears swivelled to the right, and they were off again.

Sounds of a scuffle began to be heard, and Featherpaw gasped as she caught sight of at least five cats fighting. With horror, she realized one of them was Bouncefire, writhing underneath the combined blows of four unfamiliar cats.

"Attack!" Sparrowpelt yowled, and the patrol charged forwards, leaping on top of the four rogues, who were now outnumbered by two. Featherpaw found herself with Seedtail again, battling a pure white she-cat. Seedtail and the she-cat launched themselves at each other, and Featherpaw soon found herself feeling outclassed by their superior battle strength and skills. However, she still flitted in and out, nipping wherever she could find room.

At one point, the white she-cat gained the upper paw, and scored her claws down Seedtail's flank. The spotted she-cat screeched in pain, leaving herself wide open as she did so. Featherpaw yowled in rage, launching herself on top of her opponent and clawing wherever she could reach. In response, the she-cat threw herself onto the ground, crushing the air out of the smaller apprentice's lungs. As she scrabbled for freedom, the she-cat's weight was taken off of her as Seedtail rose once again into the fight, now bleeding from one side.

They began to push back the she-cat, step by step, and Featherpaw couldn't help but feel a rush of exhilaration as they did so.

"Blacktop! Haven! Ripper!" A voice rang out from the battle, and Featherpaw jumped. She had nearly forgotten about what had been occurring around her. She glanced up to see a silvery-gray she-cat with piercing green eyes separate herself from Sagenose and Mintfur. The two littermates glanced at each other, then warily pulled back as well. The white cat did the same, as did a huge black tom with Sparrowpelt and a black she-cat with white streaks with Sandypaw.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sparrowpelt took charge immediately, spiking his fur threateningly along his spine. Despite a torn ear and cuts along his flank, he still managed to look extremely intimidating.

The she-cat didn't answer, instead looking the senior warrior up and down.

"Are you this clan's leader?" She finally questioned. Featherpaw blinked in surprise. She knew about the clan? Then why was she stupid enough to attack them?

"No," Sparrowpelt responded, not leaving his threatening stance. "Though I am a senior member. Who are you and why are you attacking us?"

"I am Moonlight," the she-cat responded instead of answering. "This is Blacktop," the gestured to the imposing black tom. "Haven," her tail flicked to the white she-cat Featherpaw and Seedtail had been fighting earlier. "And Ripper," she motioned to the young black and white-streaked she-cat. "Your name is…?"

"Sparrowpelt," the brown tabby replied curtly. He didn't elaborate on the rest of his clanmates, which Featherpaw appreciated. She didn't know how she would feel with these rogues knowing her name. "Why are you here?" He repeated.

"That is of no importance," Moonlight shrugged. "Yet. I do hope you'll remember us, though. Sparrowpelt." She spoke the name slowly, as if testing how it felt against her tongue. "An odd name, but I am not one to judge. When the war begins, _Sparrowpelt_, remember and look for me. I prefer to know who I'm about to fight and kill. Consider this our… welcoming party."

Before anyone could react, Moonlight turned tail and sprinted away and towards the border. In only a moment, Blacktop, Ripper, and finally Haven followed. Featherpaw let out a breath. It was over.

Sandypaw didn't seem to have the same idea. He lunged forwards to chase them, snarling, but Sparrowpelt blocked him with his tail.

"Let them go," he murmured. "We need to check on Bouncefire."

_Bouncefire!_

Featherpaw gasped in remembrance and whipped around. Mintfur was already at the ginger tom's side, frantically licking his blood soaked fur.

"Sagenose, Sandypaw, go find cobwebs!" Seedtail exclaimed frantically, joining Mintfur's side. Sparrowpelt shook his head, causing the other two toms to stop.

"It's too late," the senior warrior mewed heavily. Featherpaw's paws carried her forwards in shock. "He's on his way to Starclan."

As she watched on, Bouncefire's eyes flickered open. His sides struggled for breath as he locked eyes with Sparrowpelt. Something seemed to pass between the two toms, and then Bouncefire's eyes closed, and he stilled. Mintfur continued to try and lick him awake, but Seedtail pulled back, tail limp.

"He's dead," she announced solemnly.

* * *

"Are you alright?"

Tawnypaw's voice cut through the haze in Featherpaw's mind. She felt something being dabbed onto her pelt, but it was easy to ignore. She lifted her head to see her littermates all sitting next to her. Tawnypaw was applying some sort of her to the cuts on her pelt, while Firepaw watched her worriedly. Even the annoying Hawkpaw was there—for once, he and Tawnypaw had forgotten their strange quarrel—a mouse hanging from his mouth. He dropped it at her paws.

"Here," He offered. "We've already eaten."

Featherpaw frowned, not wanting to accept anything from her brother, but finally just shrugged and took a bite.

"I'll be alright," she murmured. She was still in a state of shock from Bouncefire's death. The warrior had been one of the best in the clan. Brambleclaw had once said that he'd be a good candidate for deputy in a few moons, if something happened to Sharpclaw.

_What a waste_.

She turned her head to glance at Honeypaw. She had suffered worse wounds than anyone. She was covered in cobwebs, but she could hardly see the elder apprentice through the black and light brown furs of Birdpaw and Sandypaw. The three littermates were all pressed against each other, offering silent comfort in their sister's loss. No words were spoken.

"There," Tawnypaw pressed the last of the herbs on her pelt. "I think you were the last one, so I'm done." She settled into the dirt.

"Who did this?" Hawkpaw questioned quietly as she ate. "No one's really told me anything since Leafstar and I came back from hunting."

Featherpaw pauses to swallow a bit of mouse. "Rogues," she hissed, blood boiling just thinking of the cats who had killed Bouncefire. "They were lead by a cat named Moonlight. Seedtail and I almost defeated one of them, some cat named Haven, before they escaped."

Hawkpaw frowned and stared back at the ground, making Featherpaw tilt her head in confusion. That wasn't much like him at all.

"Well, I'm glad they ran off," Firepaw declared. "I don't know what I would do if you got hurt. Well, any of you."

"That cat couldn't have hurt me," Featherpaw huffed. Hawkpaw snorted.

"I wonder what those scratches mean, then," he cheeked, ducking a swipe from his sister.

"Featherpaw! Are you alright?" The four littermates looked up to see Cherrytail and Brambleclaw bounding towards them. Her mother spoke again. "Anything serious?"

"I'm fine, _Mom_." The brown-and-white she-cat rolled her eyes. "I was with Seedtail the whole time, remember?"

"Still…" Cherrytail licked her daughter worriedly. "You should have gone back to camp instead of Juniperpaw. You're only a moon into your training!"

"Don't worry," Brambleclaw ran a tail over his mate's back soothingly. "I'd trust Seedtail with both our lives and our kits'. She did a good job keeping Featherpaw safe, didn't she?"

"Yes, she did," the tortoiseshell sighed, then turned to Tawnypaw. "Where is she, anyways?"

"Inside the den with Echosong," the medicine cat apprentice replied. "Her cuts were pretty deep, so she wanted to keep an eye on her."

"Oh, dear," Cherrytail sighed, giving Featherpaw one last lick on the head before darting into the medicine den. Featherpaw watched her go.

"Why do you trust Seedtail so much?" Hawkpaw asked. "I mean, she's pretty awesome and all, but why her?"

"It's a long and very complicated story," their father sighed. "And one for another day. For now, let it suffice to say that I would be dead several times over if it wasn't for Seedtail and your mother. Or worse. Come on, Leafstar is about to call a clan meeting."

Featherpaw blinked. That only left her with more questions!

"Let all cats who are old enough to catch their own prey gather beneath the Rockpile for a clan meeting!"

Nonetheless, Leafstar's call echoed across the gorge, keeping Featherpaw from questioning her father further. Firepaw stood up, and Hawkpaw and Tawnypaw slowly followed. Finally, Featherpaw herself got to her feet. Pushing the remains of her mouse to the side, she walked over to the Rockpile, where most of the clan had gathered. Her eyes drifted to the center of camp, where Bouncefire's body had been laid for the night's vigil. Sitting next to the body were Clovertail, Tinycloud, and Rockshade. With a jolt, she remembered that Bouncefire and her mentor had been littermates.

_What would it be like to lose one of my littermates?_

Featherpaw shoved the thought out of her mind, and forced herself to move past them and to Leafstar. The brown-and-cream she-cat had her head bowed, looking worried but determined at the same time.

"Cats of Skyclan!" She declared. "We have suffered a great injustice today. As you all know, four rogues invaded Skyclan territory, ambushing Bouncefire and Honeypaw during an assessment. While Sparrowpelt and his patrol showed great speed and bravery in getting to the scene in time, Bouncefire later died of his wounds." Her bowed her head in respected for the warrior, allowing for a moment of silence. "However!" She continued forcefully once that moment had ended. "We have been threatened with war against the rogues. We will not back down against them!

"As such, we must speed up the training of our apprentices and raise our guards. Sharpclaw has brought up the idea of moonhigh patrols, of which I have agreed to implement."

Featherpaw flattened her ears while Hawkpaw let out a small groan. That was going to be a fun chore.

"Not only this, but we have another item of business. Though it pains me to interrupt such a time of mourning, Sandypaw, Sparrowpelt, may you two step forwards?"

Mentor and apprentice shared a confused look, but stepped forwards nonetheless.

"Sandypaw, Sharpclaw and I have heard of your valor in battle today, and as such, we will reward you. Sparrowpelt, has Sandypaw learned the warrior code and is prepared to defend Skyclan with his life?"

"H-He is," the senior warrior stammered, looking torn between shock and pride.

"Then we will proceed," Leafstar replied. "I, Leafstar, leader of Skyclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in turn. Sandypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," Sandypaw nodded.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Sandypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Sandyclaw. StarClan honors your valor and confidence, and we welcome you as a full warrior of Skyclan."

"Sandyclaw! Sandyclaw!" The clan yowled. Featherpaw couldn't help but feel a tendril of unease flicker in her belly as she did so, however. This, somehow… wasn't right. She was happy for Sandyclaw, sure, but something just felt off. The ginger-and-brown tom seemed to notice this as well, his eyes flickering uneasily towards where Bouncefire's body was lying.

Leafstar raised her tail for silence, and the clan quieted. Featherpaw frowned. Wasn't she done?

"There is one more ceremony I must perform," She announced. "Honeypaw, may you please step forwards?"

"She needs to give Honeypaw a new mentor," Tawnypaw murmured in realisation from her place at Featherpaw's side.

"Honeypaw," their leader continued. "We all grieve for the loss of Bouncefire. He was a wonderful and talented tom who taught you to be an exceptional apprentice. However, we can't afford to leave you without a mentor. Waspwhisker," the gray and white tom blinked in surprise. "You have trained Sagenose and Lakestream well. I trust you to supervise the last days of Honeypaw's training. Will you take her as your apprentice?"

"Of course I will," Waspwisker replied.

"Honeypaw? May Waspwhisker take over your training?"

The ginger she-cat nodded numbly. Stepping forwards, the new mentor-apprentice duo touched noses, then drew back into the crowd. Sandyclaw and Birdpaw returned to their sister's side.

"This meeting is over!" Leafstar announced. "I ask all my senior warriors to meet me in my den."

Featherpaw watched as Patchfoot, Sparrowpelt, Petalnose, Waspwhisker, and Clovertail joined Leafstar and Sharpclaw by the Rockpile. Glancing over at Hawkpaw, she blinked in surprise as he stood up abruptly and began walking away.

"What's wrong?" Firepaw asked, tilting his head.

"Nothing…" the brown tabby shook his head. "I just need to be alone. To try and take all of this in."

Featherpaw snorted to herself, glancing sadly at Honeypaw, Birdpaw, and Sandyclaw.

_I think we all need time to take this in._


	7. Chapter 6

**Bit of a shorter chapter, but it's honestly one of the ones I'm more satisfied with. Thanks for the reviews/favorites! I'm always open for more ;-)**

**Reviews:**

**Embers**—You aren't here for the cringe? Then what's the point?

**Kuroimori**—Duskpaw (Dusk in this story), Frost and her kits, Thorn, Ash, and Stone were accepted for _Divided Future_. Thank you so much for the submissions!

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**Chapter 6:**

Hawkpaw's pads thudded against the rocky ground as he bounded up to the top of the gorge. Grunting, he pulled himself up to the grassy plains that separated him and the clan from the Twolegplace. The sun had just started to set, sending rays of golden light across the land.

However, Hawkpaw didn't notice the beautiful sunset, with other things on his mind. The words Jayfeather had spoken to him almost a moon ago now rung in his head, and he couldn't help but wonder if that was what the starry gray tom had meant.

_Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path._

Poison… did that mean the rogues? Was Jayfeather meaning to tell him that the cats who had killed Bouncefire today posed a serious threat? If 'sky' meant Skyclan, then were they the ones in trouble? Star and dark and were more vague, and he wasn't sure what they meant yet. It wasn't like the stars could just start falling out of the sky or something.

Or could they?

Hawkpaw lashed his tail at the absurd thought. What was he thinking?! This was all so confusing. He had been given no abnormal dreams since the one with Jayfeather a moon ago, and he was still no nearer to figuring out what the Starclan cat had meant by the prophecy and his "powers." He was still skeptical if he even had powers! Tawnypaw sure thought he was off the deep end, and had gone out of her way to avoid him after he had tried to convince her of what he had heard.

"Having trouble, Hawkpaw?"

The brown tabby nearly jumped out of his skin in surprise, letting out a cry of surprise. Whipping around, he came nose-to-nose with none other than Billystorm. The senior warrior tilted his head, and Hawkpaw flattened his ears in embarrassment.

"Oh, B-Billystorm!" He stammered. "Sorry, I didn't see you there. You scared me."

"My apologies," The ginger-and-white tom apologized. "I was on my way home for the night, and I noticed you up here and went to check on you. You did seem deep in thought."

"It's nothing," Hawkpaw quickly defended himself. "I'm just… a little taken aback after everything that's happened."

"I think we all were caught on the wrong paw," Billystorm agreed. "Bouncefire's death was tragic." He bowed his head, and Hawkpaw blinked in sympathy. He had known the ginger tom a lot longer than he had.

"Who were these cats?" He found himself asking after a moment. "Why did they attack us? It's not like we've done anything wrong!"

Billystorm shook his head. "Some cats have different ways of thinking, young one. And in some cases they think everyone has to be like them because their way is best—in their point of view. Often, they'll resort to violence to get what they want. It's a danger you have to accept in becoming a clan cat."

"Point of view?" Hawkpaw felt lost. "But how can they not see that attacking us is wrong? We're the ones in the right; clan life is the best way to go, isn't it?"

Billystorm shrugged. "It all depends on how you view things. Say, if you were a loner, and suddenly, you hear of a group of cats who are taking all of the prey nearby and attacking everyone in their territory, how would you feel?"

"But we don't attack every cat who crosses our borders! That's stupid. How would get new cats to join the clan?"

"Hawkpaw, just put yourself in that cat's paws. Rumors can change over time. How would you feel?"

The brown tabby frowned, and looked to the now rapidly disappearing sun as he thought.

"...Threatened, I suppose."

"And what if you wanted to keep your territory, and hear that this group of cats might want to take it over? What would you do?"

"But we don't—"

"_Hawkpaw_. Humor me, here."

"I'd be scared. And I'd want to protect my home."

"Well, there's your answer. The trick is that you have to put yourself in someone else's paws. What do we know about these cats?"

"That they're evil! They kill cats by attacking them unfairly!"

"Not what we assume, what we _know. _Facts."

"Um…" His mind blanked. "They unfairly attacked Bouncefire and Honeypaw, and killed Bouncefire by ganging up on him four to one."

"Do we know why they attacked? Really know why?"

"No…"

"Then should we really jump to conclusions without thinking first?"

"But shouldn't we stop them?" Hawkpaw flattened his ears. "Bouncefire is _dead_ because of them! Why should we sympathize with them?"

"I'm not saying we should!" Billystorm shot back just as harshly. "But it's critical that we try and figure out why a cat does something than go in blindly. Honestly, you're just as bad as your mother. It's how the twolegs—" He suddenly cut himself off, looking hauntedly into the distance. "Nevermind that."

Hawkpaw frowned, but didn't press any further. What had he meant about his mother, and why had Billystorm acted so oddly?

"Don't you need to get back to your twolegs?" He asked instead, noting that the sun had practically set already. "It's late."

"I suppose I can do one night without them," the senior warrior shrugged, tapping Hawkpaw with his tail. "I'm sure Leafstar will be happy to know you're safe as well. She's very proud of you, you know."

"Really?" Hawkpaw questioned, surprised. He'd been moving at the usual rate of an apprentice. Nothing really special.

"Of course," Billystorm replied. He began to pad back towards the gorge. Hawkpaw quickly followed him. "She's very impressed with how quickly you're progressing in battle training. You're almost able to take on Hollypaw, and he's three moons ahead of you."

"Thanks," Hawkpaw murmured, licking his chest fur self-consciously. A swell of pride moved in his chest. He had impressed his mentor!

The two began their descent down to the bottom of the gorge. It was now dark, and most of the cats had gone to bed, though Sandyclaw had started his vigil. Hawkpaw blinked in slight surprise as he noticed Tawnypaw and Echosong conversing with Stormheart and Harrybrook. Why were they still up?

"It's the half moon tonight," Billystorm murmured, seeming to sense Hawkpaw's silent question. "Which means that Echosong and Tawnypaw will be going to the Whispering Cave."

"The Whispering Cave? What's so special about that?" Hawkpaw found himself confused. The Whispering Cave a small cave that fed the river that flowed through the gorge. It was a great place to find moss; he had just been there that morning collecting some for Featherpaw and Juniperpaw to use in the nursery.

"It hasn't come up in conversation?"

Hawkpaw shook his head.

"Well, the Whispering Cave is the place where our medicine cats speak with Starclan every half moon. It's a very important tradition, as they receive insight from our warrior ancestors and warning of possible threats to our way of life."

"Woah," Hawkpaw breathed. "That's so cool." So maybe tonight Echosong or Tawnypaw would be visited by Jayfeather. Maybe he would tell them about that weird phrase that he kept on telling him.

"Yes. Tonight will be especially important, as it's Tawnypaw's first time to the cave. There, Starclan will accept her formally into their ranks and she'll become a true apprentice."

"Why are Harrybrook and Stormheart with them?"

"Another tradition. The newest warriors of the clan will accompany the medicine cats to the cave and guard them as they speak with Starclan. We started it around two leaf-bares ago, when Echosong and Frecklewish were almost attacked by a fox."

Hawkpaw blinked. "Who's Frecklewish?" he asked. "I've never heard of him before."

Billystorm's eyes clouded, and regret seeped from his pelt. The brown tabby flattened his ears as he felt this, instantly knowing he had brought up a bad memory.

"Frecklewish was Echosong's first apprentice," he sighed. "Long before you were born. She was a daylight apprentice first, and Echosong had to fight hard to get Leafstar to let her become a medicine cat. She got her full name, but…" He paused for a moment, then went on. "Soon after, she was out collecting herbs with Rabbitleap, then an apprentice, and I. We had gone down the grassy flats up above the gorge, farther than usual in search of yarrow. When we found a patch, Frecklewish was so excited, she didn't watch where she was going. She accidentally stepped in a snake's burrow and was bitten. I sent Rabbitleap back for help, but by the time he made it back, she was gone."

"I'm sorry…" Hawkpaw responded at the story's end, regretting having asked the question. Sadness was practically pooling around the senior warrior. "I didn't know."

"It's quite alright. It was long before your time. Anyways," Billystorm shook himself out. "I'm going to get to bed, as should you. We both have a long day tomorrow."

Hawkpaw nodded, glancing back towards Echosong, Tawnypaw, Harrybrook and Stormheart as they began to quietly leave camp. _I wonder what it's like to be able to dream with Starclan every moon. I'd sure like to ask Jayfeather what he meant in my dream. Lucky Tawnypaw…_

However, his paws carried him back to the apprentices' den as he shared goodnights with Billystorm, who moved towards the leader's den. Squeezing past Birdpaw, who had moved her nest closer to Juniperpaw and Firepaw's since Honeypaw and Sandyclaw were no longer there, he laid down in his nest. Soon, he found himself asleep, still thinking of Tawnypaw and her meeting with Starclan.

* * *

Hawkpaw blinked open his eyes, and instantly realised he was dreaming. It was kind of obvious, actually, considering the forest he had abruptly found himself standing in. The moon was shining brightly overhead, despite the late hour and the fact that it was only half-full.

He looked around, trying to find any sign of cats nearby. This wasn't any normal dream, that was for sure. Had Jayfeather come back to talk with him? However, he couldn't see anyone, making him frown in confusion. Abruptly, his ears twitched to the right as a soft murmuring reached him. He raised his head in that direction, and slowly made his way towards them.

"...danger is coming. Greater than anything Skyclan has ever faced, greater than even your predecessors…"

Hawkpaw's ears angled forwards as he heard the voice form into words. Ducking under a large brush, he squeezed through the branches, stopping when several cats came into sight through the leaves. Suddenly, he had the feeling that he was _not_ supposed to be here, and was very grateful for the branches covering him.

In front of him, he saw Echosong and Tawnypaw, side by side. Talking to them was large dark tom with thick fur, a dark brown tabby tom, and a ginger tabby she-cat. Stars flecked the three unknown cats' fur. Echosong was very nervous and worried, while Tawnypaw was still rather confident, though undercurrents of fear betrayed her. The Starclan cats were also worried, though they held certainty close to them.

"Does this have anything to do with the rogues who attacked today?" The tabby medicine cat questioned, shuffling her paws.

"Is Bouncefire alright?" Tawnypaw asked as well.

"Yes, to both of your questions," the brown tabby answered. He lowered his voice, and Hawkpaw frowned as he couldn't make out the tom's next words. "You must find them in order to save the clan," he finished, raising his voice again.

"What, Spiderstar?!" Echosong exclaimed. "We haven't had one in moons!"

"The time has come for another," the gray tom spoke. "You have well exceeded in you calling, Echosong; Tawnypaw, we are sure you will fill her footsteps admirably. We know that you will find the cat who has received this foretelling."

"Can't you tell us who it is?" The young tortoiseshell protested. Echosong hurriedly hushed her, embarrassed.

"I apologise for my apprentice, Skywatcher," she apologised, though agreement flashed through her. The tom shook his head.

"It's quite alright," Skywatcher purred, while Hawkpaw had to stifle a gasp at the name.

_Is that… Skywatcher? The Skywatcher from all of Patchfoot's stories?!_

"Skyclan has grown the roots it has needed to survive," Spiderstar announced. "And now it is time to use them. It has been given to the one who holds the power of the stars in his paws. It is up to you to find this cat."

"Can you tell us anything more?" Echosong replied.

"No. But they will reveal themselves in time. The roots you have planted will prove critical in the moons to come. Stay safe. We believe in you."

Hawkpaw tensed as Echosong and Tawnypaw faded out of existence, alarmed. That was supposed to happen, right? The Starclan cats sure were acting normal about it. He kept himself pressed flat against the ground, hoping to Star—no, not Starclan. To anyone else who could be watching—that he wouldn't be scented or seen.

The three Starclan cats murmured to each other lowly, before the tabby she-cat shook her head disapprovingly and walked off. Sharing a look, Skywatcher and Spiderstar padded off together, fading into the landscape.

Hawkpaw let out a breath. In some strange stroke of luck, Starclan hadn't noticed him. He relaxed, sagging into the dirt. Now, he just needed to find a way to wake up and act like this had never happened. He probably wasn't supposed to have heard any of that conversation, and he didn't want to get into trouble for it. Sharpclaw's punishments were bad enough; he could barely imagine what Starclan was like when angered. If they were anything like Jayfeather, he was doomed.

"Hello, Hawkpaw."

The brown tabby tom let out a shriek in terror, leaping up into the bramble bush. Immediately, his fur caught in the branches, sticking him in place. He quickly tried to escape, but it was no use. He was trapped.

"Now that is one of the best reactions I've seen to someone meeting a Starclan cat. Definitely going down in my memory."

Hawkpaw burned under his pelt. Reaching out behind him, he could sense amusement coming from a cat behind him. He tried to get out of the bush again, but his fur was just refusing to let him move. He hissed to himself. He didn't even have long fur! Why was he getting stuck now of all times?!

"Who are you?" He asked. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop! Honestly! I won't tell anyone about this!"

"I know," The voice chuckled. The bush shifted, and the branches were slowly untangled from his pelt. After a couple minutes, Hawkpaw found himself untangled from the bush, and he slowly wriggled backwards and out of it to find himself face to face with the ginger tabby she-cat he had seen earlier. He ducked down, flattening his ears submissively.

"Don't act like that," the she-cat rolled her eyes, flicking her tail to his side. "Skywatcher and Spiderstar only asked me to guide you home. We're off the chart. No formalities needed."

"Oh… okay, then," he shifted his paws awkwardly. "Who are you?"

"Honeyleaf," the she-cat answered. "The last deputy of Skyclan before it disbanded seasons ago. You are Hawkpaw, son of Brambleclaw and Cherrytail. Why did you make your way here?"

"I came here on purpose?"

"Of course. We were surprised to see you here when we were delivering our message to Echosong, but not much damage has been done."

Hawkpaw nodded, relieved he wasn't in trouble. "I really didn't mean to end up here. It was an accident."

"You were thinking about Tawnypaw, weren't you? That would explain why you entered her dreams. It's quite astonishing you could do it from such a distance, honestly. Jayfeather will be impressed."

"Wait, you know Jayfeather?!" Hawkpaw exclaimed, standing up. "Where is he? He visited me in a dream a moon ago and I've been wanting to ask him questions about it for _ages_!"

Honeyleaf flicked an ear. "You've come at a bad time, then. You see, Jayfeather walks two different skies. Though he does stay with us most of the time, sometimes he has to leave for a little bit. You've caught him at one of those times."

_You have got to be kidding me!_ "Can't you call him here or something?" He pressed, desperate.

"I _could_…" Honeyleaf shrugged. "But then I'd be ruining more than one plan. You're going to have to figure out this by yourself. You can't always rely on us to solve your problems, you know."

"But you're _Starclan_!"

"And _you _are a disrespectful apprentice who doesn't know his place. I think we balance each other out."

Hawkpaw frowned, feeling beaten, then decided to try for at least one of the things that had been bothering him. "Well, I _do_ have powers, right? Jayfeather said I did, but Tawnypaw is convinced I'm just crazy."

Honeyleaf laughed shortly, shaking her head as disbelief and amusement flowed off of her. The Skyclan apprentice raised his head slightly, wondering if he had said something wrong. She wasn't making fun of him, was she?

"Dear, dear Hawkpaw," she chuckled, touching noses with him. "How do you think you found your way into Starclan in the first place?"

Before he could answer, everything faded into black.


	8. Chapter 7

**Big thanks to Kuroimori for the review. The more reviews I get, especially critical ones, the better this story gets. :-)**

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**Chapter 7:**

"Ugh. I feel like _crap_!"

Featherpaw rolled her eyes discreetly as Stormheart rambled on about how _hard_ her vigil over Tawnypaw and Echosong had been, and how her bones now just didn't feel _right _after sitting in a moist place for so long. The brown-and-white apprentice took a large bite out of the shrew she was eating, hoping her chewing would drown out the young warrior's dramatics. Next to her, Firepaw looked just as exasperated, and even Hawkpaw was looking annoyed, despite the oddly cheerful mood he had woken up that morning. Harrybrook, sharing breakfast with his sister, was just plain embarrassed.

"I mean, how do the medicine cats stand it, going in there and sleeping all night every moon? I'm stiff as a board and I was able to move!"

Hawkpaw's head thudded onto the ground. Stormheart gave him an odd look, but then continued on regardless.

"But in all honesty, I'm glad to have all of these dumb traditions out of the way. Now I can focus on being the best warrior I can be!"

Featherpaw resisted pulling a smart retort. If she was rude to Stormheart, no doubt word would get back to Cherrytail and she'd be skinned alive for "bad-mouthing her elders" again. She was a full apprentice, but she had a feeling that her mother was never going to fully let go of her in that regard.

_Please, Rockshade, call me for training soon!_

"Ah, Stormheart, why don't we go and get to bed?" Harrybrook suggested, standing up and stretching with a yawn. "We've been up all night and I'm exhausted."

Stormheart sent her brother an odd look, but nodded her head. "I guess so," she conceded. "I _am_ tired. Sleep sounds nice."

"Let's go." Harrybrook sent an apologetic look to the littermates as he and his sister stumbled off to the warrior's den. In response he got three apprentices looking at him as if he was a Starclan cat sent down from Silverpelt to save them.

"Oh, thank Starclan!" Featherpaw sighed once they were out of earshot, taking another bite of shrew. "What a breakfast this turned out to be! I was beginning to think that she'd never leave."

"Well, you have a point," Firepaw admitted sheepishly. "I mean, Tawnypaw didn't complain about the trip, and it was her first time, too."

"But she was learning of the magical mysteries of Starclan. Maybe she was a bit distracted," Featherpaw snorted. "Though all joking aside, I wonder what happened there. I wish she was allowed to tell us!"

"No doubt it was something about the rogues," Firepaw replied. "After what happened yesterday, I would expect them to take action about it."

"Who knows," the brown-and-white she-cat shrugged, finishing off her shrew. "Well, I'm done. Anyone what to come with me while I bury this?"

"Ew, no," the light ginger tom stuck out his tongue.

"Nah. Too lazy to get up," Hawkpaw yawned. "I feel like I've been awake for most of the night. Training is going to be _fun _until I actually wake up."

"Whatever," Featherpaw picked up the remains of her shrew and stood up, bounding down the gorge and towards the river. Quickly, she dug a shallow hole and buried the remains of her prey, thanking Starclan internally as she did so. After filling in the hole, she stretched, feeling her back pop, and looked around.

A small crowd was gathered near the Rockpile. Confused and curiosity piked, she padded towards them, catching sight of Seedtail near the edge of the small group. She put on a short burst of speed to reach them in a quick amount of time, slowing to a trot as she came up to her parents' old friend.

"Hey, Seedtail," she greeted quietly, as to not disturb the commotion. "What's going on?"

The spotted she-cat angled her ears towards the center of the crowd. Following her direction, she spotted Leafstar and Sharpclaw talking to several of the senior warriors (Waspwhisker and Sparrowpelt, to be exact), while a couple other warriors around them waited quietly.

"Leafstar and Sharpclaw are sending out a recon patrol after the rogues," Seedtail explained lowly. "They're discussing who to take now." She frowned, licking her flank almost angrily, where Echosong had bandaged the heavy wound she had received the previous day. "I can't go, of course, because of my wounds. No doubt they won't be taking any apprentices either."

"Darn it," Featherpaw hissed, frustrated. Her own scratches were healing nicely, why couldn't she go?

"You're a moon into training," Seedtail murmured strictly. "You shouldn't have participated in that battle at all. Cherrytail was giving Sparrowpelt a piece of her mind last night, actually, since he sent Juniperpaw back to camp instead of you."

"I can handle myself!"

Before the spotted she-cat could retort, Sharpclaw spoke up, his voice carrying over the small crowd.

"We've decided who to take on the patrol!" He announced. "Leafstar and I have spoken, and decided that our best course of action to take would be to send our fastest cats and best trackers to follow them. As such, Sagenose, Macgyver, Creekfeather, Birdpaw, and Plumwillow will be going on this patrol, lead by Waspwhisker. Any questions?"

"But Sharpclaw!" Featherpaw watched as Sagenose stood up, looking horrified. "Plumwillow is a nursing queen—and my mate, at that! Why has she been chosen for this mission?"

"Plumwillow is the fastest cat in this clan, Sagenose," Sharpclaw responded cooly. "She is going to be a critical part of the patrol." At Sagenose's mutinous expression, he continued. "At the first sign of danger, her job will be to run back to us for help. She'll be safe."

The pale gray tom simply hissed to himself and padded down to the nursery, most likely to find his mate and inform her of their new assignment.

Featherpaw couldn't help but feel upset as well. Sagenose and Plumwillow were the parents of Ashenkit, Owlkit, and Flightkit, her old friends.

"I see where Leafstar is coming from, but sending a queen on such a dangerous patrol? No wonder Sagenose is so upset," Seedtail muttered.

"At least they can go," Featherpaw huffed. Seedtail shot her a stern look. "They're taking Birdpaw!"

"The only reason Birdpaw isn't a warrior yet is because she's hasn't had a chance to take her assessments—in fact, I think this will count as her assessment. This patrol could last more than a day as well. There is no room for error. This is a dangerous mission, and could take a day or two depending on how far away the rogues live."

Featherpaw flexed her claws, still upset. Those rogues had killed one of her clanmates! They needed to pay!

However, Seedtail's expression left no room for further argument, and she instead stalked off and back towards her brothers. This just wasn't fair!

Hawkpaw and Firepaw were by the fresh kill pile now, talking together and watching as the patrol gathered to set off. As she watched, Tawnypaw and Echosong were passing by her littermates to give traveling herbs to the patrol, and she scowled, feeling another pang of jealousy. As she watched, however, Hawkpaw moved towards Tawnypaw, saying something, but the tortoiseshell simply waved him off and passed by, leaving her brother in the dust.

Hawkpaw made a face at his sister's back, and turned to see Featherpaw. He bounded over to her, Firepaw on his heels.

"What's going on, Featherpaw?" Hawkpaw questioned. "There's a big fuss by the Rockpile. And Tawnypaw's just ignoring me, as usual."

Featherpaw quickly passed on the information about the tracking patrol. Once she finished, Hawkpaw nodded in agreement.

"I'd be mad too if they didn't go after the rogues. They did threaten us with war, after all. If I was Leafstar, I'd want to get back at them," Hawkpaw announced. "I'd wish I was chosen to join, though. I'd shred their pelts off!"

"That's what I said," Featherpaw agreed angrily. "But Seedtail said we're too young and not far enough in our training to go on such a long and 'dangerous' trip."

"Maybe for you," Hawkpaw unsheathed his claws into the dirt. "But the rogues would be running away from me if I were there."

"Oh, really? I'm certain that you'd be quaking in your paws if you met them! I've fought them!"

"Please don't fight!" Firepaw interrupted desperately. "We had a streak going! You promised you wouldn't!"

"Too late!" Hawkpaw screeched, leaping onto his sister. Featherpaw let out a battle cry and tackled him as well. They turned onto the ground. Not even bothering to use their newly learned battle moves, they wrestled violently—claws sheathed, of course.

Featherpaw hissed as Hawkpaw hit one of her scratches from yesterday, and bucked upwards, knocking him off. They launched at each other again, and Hawkpaw used his greater size to try and smother her. Featherpaw barely wriggled out in time and scored a blunt blow on his side. The brown tabby then locked her in a hold. Featherpaw wriggled, trying to escape, but her brother was much too strong.

"Give up?" He asked smugly. Featherpaw hissed in response.

"Can you two just stop—uh-oh," Firepaw suddenly cut himself off.

"What are you two doing?"

The two littermates separated themselves as quickly as possible, putting a good fox-length in between them as they found themselves facing a very irate Sharpclaw. The two flattened their ears, quarrel almost instantly forgotten.

"Well?"

"Just a disagreement, Sharpclaw," Firepaw spoke up first. "It wasn't their fault. Hawkpaw and Featherpaw are always fighting. They just don't mix very well."

"Really, because it seems to me that you three are slacking off here and causing unnecessary trouble," the deputy hissed, causing Firepaw to practically flatten himself into the ground, intimidated.

"Hey! We weren't bothering anyone!" Featherpaw protested.

Sharpclaw bore his fangs, effectively shutting the young apprentice up. Hawkpaw looked as if he wanted to follow his sister's example, but said nothing, obviously thinking better of it.

"A good part of me wants to confine you to camp for the rest of the day," the dark ginger tom continued. "Maybe I should follow through with that instinct."

"Come now, Sharpclaw, you're being unreasonable."

Firepaw let out a gasp as the three turned around to see Brambleclaw padding up to them. However, his usual light demeanor was replaced with a gruff and commanding air. Featherpaw blinked in surprise. She had never seen her father so serious before.

"They were fighting and causing a commotion," the deputy snapped back. Brambleclaw flattened his ears.

"I know you don't like me, Sharpclaw, but don't take it out on my kits. This is between you and me."

The long-clawed tom flattened his ears and growled slightly. "Then control them. I want all three of you to have cleaned out the elder's den _and_ the nursery by sundown. Firepaw, Hawkpaw, Nettlesplash wants you for battle training. Featherpaw, since Rockshade is still recovering from yesterday, you're free. I suggest you get to work."

And with that, he stalked off and back towards the other warriors. Featherpaw flattened her ears and made an insulting face at his back.

"But I didn't do anything…" Firepaw whined.

"Don't mind Sharpclaw," Brambleclaw sighed. "He's just pretty stressed with what's going on right now. He doesn't cope well with losing a clanmate."

"So do we have to clean today?" Hawkpaw questioned hopefully. Brambleclaw sent him a stern look.

"Of course you do. He's deputy. Only Leafstar can overturn his decisions."

"Fox dung."

"Don't test me with language like that, Hawkpaw. Now go on, you two. Nettlesplash isn't going to wait forever, you know. Unless you want to get into more trouble."

Almost groaning in unison, the two brothers stalked off together. Featherpaw couldn't help but snort at the sight of her two brothers, so different in terms of personality and appearance, acting so similar. Then she sighed herself as she remembered the long day of chores that awaited her.

"Don't worry," her father soothed her. "You're not the only one who was always stuck with camp chores."

"Really?" Featherpaw blinked, surprised. Birdpaw, Honeypaw, and Hollypaw were all "model" apprentices, and even Sandyclaw and Juniperpaw managed to get out of punishments most days.

"Sure," Brambleclaw chuckled nostalgically. His eyes zoned off into the distance, and Featherpaw suddenly had the feeling he wasn't talking to her anymore. "It was practically a family trait in Firestar's line; he used to get into trouble all the time as an apprentice, and don't even get me started on Squirrelflight. Even Jayfeather would—"

Suddenly the brown tabby stiffened and he cut himself off, looking horrified. His gaze snapped back to his daughter, then around, as if he was worried someone else had overheard them.

"Dad?" Featherpaw asked timidly, not sure if she should press but curiosity taking over anyways. "How did you know that about Firestar? Did he tell you?" Brambleclaw was old enough to have been around when Skyclan had been reformed. Had he been there?

Actually, now that she thought about it, she didn't know if he had been one of the founding members of the clan, like her mother had. Had he joined later on? And if so, how did he know that story?

"Excuse me," Brambleclaw breathed. Standing up, he quickly bounded away and towards the warrior's den.

Featherpaw blinked. What was that? And now that she thought about it, who were Squirrelflight and Jayfeather anyways?

* * *

"Where am I?"

Featherpaw frowned, feeling uneasy. She was standing in a grassy field, completely alone. She looked round about her, trying to identify where she was but coming up empty-pawed.

She was dreaming. She didn't know how she knew this; she just did. The day had gone rather normally after her conversation with her father, save for the fact that she hadn't trained all day, since Rockshade had yet to leave the warrior's den. The nursery had been cleaned and she had ended up hanging out with Flightkit and Thrushkit (who, as it turned out, liked to complain about _everything_) as she did so. The patrol sent out after the rogues hadn't returned all day, and Ebonyclaw decided to stay overnight to wait for Macgyver in case he came back during the night. By the time the sun had set, Featherpaw had easily went to bed in her nest next to Hawkpaw and Juniperpaw.

So what was this dream? Usually she never noticed that she was dreaming, no matter how ridiculous it would get. She huffed, scraping a paw over the ground. This was boring. Couldn't she just wake up already?

However, she was dragged out of her thoughts as a scent wafted up her nose. _Mouse! _She had never hunted in an open field before (the open plains between the top of the gorge and the Twolegplace were more advanced lessons she hadn't learned yet), but she felt certain she could catch it.

Crouching down, she arched her spine and crept forwards, trying to make her paws as light as possible so she wouldn't be noticed. After a couple pawsteps, the mouse came into sight, chewing on a seed. Cautiously, she bunched down on her hind legs, just as Rockshade had taught her, shifting her weight backwards. The mouse twitched at the movements, and Featherpaw froze.

After what seemed like a lifetime, the small rodent returned to its meal, and Featherpaw almost let out a sigh of relief before holding it in. She unsheathed her claws and crunched down just a little bit more before springing forwards with a hiss.

Her paws landed only slightly off of her mark, leaving the mouse stunned but still alive. Quickly, it began to scramble away, and in a panic, Featherpaw lunged at it and snapped its neck. She frowned at the messy kill, but couldn't help but feel proud of her accomplishment, dream or not.

"Good catch."

Featherpaw whipped around, ears flat as she came face to face with a brown tabby tom with a white belly. He was nearly twice as large as her, making her back away a few steps in fear.

"I-Is this your field?" She asked, the words coming out before she thought them through, then winced. _How would this be _his _field? I'm dreaming!_

The tom didn't seem to notice.

"I visit here from time to time," he shrugged. "Just like you do."

"Have you been watching me?" Featherpaw questioned, feeling uneasy. What kind of dream was this?

"Only long enough to see you catch that mouse. A very good catch—you have a lot of talent for such a young apprentice—but your pounce was slightly off. I could show you how to fix that, if you want."

Featherpaw fell silent, considering it. This tom smelled off, like a forest deep in the night, but he thought she had a lot of talent! She nodded her head.

"Sure," she replied.

"Watch this, then." Crouching, the tom leaped forwards, his back flat and smooth. His flank barely brushed the stems of the tall grass, keeping him as silent as a mouse.

Featherpaw watched in unexpected awe. She had never seen anyone hunt like that before. Skyclan always focused on jumping and climbing to catch prey, not this slow, stealthy way that required creeping close to the ground.

"You try," the tom suggested as he stood up. He brought out a moss-ball around the size of a mouse out as bait. "Keeping your spine straight and flat is the trick."

Featherpaw nodded, determined to get it right. She crouched down, trying to mirror the tom's form. She sprang towards the moss, but when she tried to flatten her spine, fell off balance and stumbled upon hitting the ground. She hissed in frustration.

"No one ever gets this move right on their first try. Do it again," the tom coaxed.

She nodded and stepped back two fox-lengths, bent down and sprang again. This time, however, she overestimated the jump, sailing over the moss. Though she landed right, she unsheathed her claws, upset at having failed a second time.

"You nailed the landing. Now just try to put the right amount of power into the jump," came the gentle encouragement.

Deciding to try one more time, Featherpaw backed off again and took the crouched position slowly, making sure she felt that every muscle in her body was in place before pouncing. She sailed over the stems almost perfectly and caught the ball of moss in her paws, almost as if it had been sent there just in the right place for her to catch it.

"Wow! That's a cool move," she exclaimed as she sat up. "I'll have to show that to my brothers!"

"Who are your brothers?" The tom asked, before looking around. "Are they here?"

"It's just me." Featherpaw shook her head. "Their names are Hawkpaw and Firepaw. Firepaw is easily scared and he doesn't like fighting—which I think is stupid. Hawkpaw, on the other paw, is a smart aleck who won't shut up. Wait until I show them this new move! They'll be so jealous!"

"Is Firepaw the medicine cat apprentice?"

"No. He can't handle blood very well at all. One time I got a cut and _he_ was the one who panicked." She laughed a bit at the silly memory. She and Hawkpaw had teased him for days after that. "My sister, Tawnypaw, has that role."

"Hawkpaw the smart-aleck, Tawnypaw the medicine cat, Firepaw the pacifist," the tom spoke the names, as if testing them on his tongue. He chuckled. "Now that is ironic."

Someone called in the distance, and Featherpaw felt a tugging in her gut.

"I have to go," she sighed, disappointed she couldn't stay longer.

"Can you at least tell me your name before you leave?"

"Featherpaw," the brown-and-white she-cat answered. "And you?"

"Hawkfrost."

* * *

**And slowly the overarching plot begins to take form... Let me know what you think of this new development, and have a great week!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Thank you for the reviews and attention given to the last chapter. We are officially halfway through the book! **

**On another note, I now have extended (and spoiler-free!) summaries of _Secrets of the Past _and the next four books in the _Fire and Tiger _series on my profile if you want to see what plans I have for the future. Feel free to PM any ideas or random characters you'd like to see!**

**Reviews:**

**Embers**—Don't feel bad for not reviewing so often; your reviews are so thorough and long they hold me over for a couple chapters. I love reading them ;). Featherpaw is the delinquent child of the four I suppose, lol. I'm hoping I write the Dark Forest better. What did you like and not like about them? For reference. Part of the reason Brambleclaw is so secretive of his past to Featherpaw is because she is the equivalent of a young teenager and she and her siblings are a bit too young to know the story. The reason most of the clan doesn't know is yet to be revealed.

**Kuroimori**—"Evil Uncle Hawkfrost" and "Grandpa Tigerstar" are the best descriptions of the two I've heard in a long time, haha.

* * *

**Chapter 8:**

Hawkpaw yawned, blinking his eyes open. A paw prodded at his side, and his groaned, batting it away before sitting up stiffly.

He looked over to see Firepaw flicking an ear and motioning for him to get up. Looking around, he noted that Juniperpaw and Featherpaw were still asleep. No doubt his littermate didn't want to bother them yet.

Firepaw angled his head towards the exit to the apprentice's den, beckoning him to follow. Pale moonlight filtered in from outside, and Hawkpaw felt a trickle of confusion as to why is was still so late before he remembered why.

_Oh, yeah. We're part of the Moonhigh patrol. Fantastic._

Nodding to his brother, the brown tabby stood up, stretching out each leg before following Firepaw outside and into the main camp. Nothing was said—both were much too tired to do so—but they were able to agree that they were going to get this done as quickly as possible. Down by the warrior's den were Nettlesplash, Ebonyclaw, Petalnose, and Leafstar, talking together quietly.

"Firepaw. Hawkpaw," Leafstar greeted with a nod of the head. "Sleep well so far?"

"Yeah," The brown tabby yawned widely while the sandy-toned tom nodded. "But I'm exhausted anyways."

"That's normal," Nettlesplash spoke up, looking amused. "I have to admit, we haven't had to set in night-time patrols before. We're all getting used to it."

"I'm still half-asleep," Petalnose remarked, grooming a paw and dragging it over one ear. "It's difficult enough getting up on time!"

"Where will we be patrolling?" Firepaw questioned. "I forgot to ask when we were assigned to do this earlier."

"We'll be splitting up into two groups," Leafstar replied. "Petalnose will be leading you and Nettlesplash towards where the sun would rise, by the Pine Groves. Hawkpaw, Ebonyclaw, Nightheart, and I will be going in the opposite direction."

"Nightheart?" Hawkpaw echoed, looking around to try and find the newer warrior. The tom was always silent and kinda creepy, in his opinion. He hadn't had much interaction with the guy, honestly, since he had joined the clan five moons ago.

"I'm here," came a deep mew, and Firepaw jumped as the large, jet-black tom stepped out of the shadows. His paws shined a silver-white in the moonlight, and his expression was deadly serious.

But then again, when was he not?

"Are we ready, then?" Ebonyclaw asked, almost as camouflaged as Nightheart was with her black pelt. Hawkpaw had to look twice to make sure she was there. The eldest daylight warrior was kneading her paws in the ground, looking as if she wanted to get moving.

"I believe so," Petalnose nodded to Leafstar, and the warriors all stood up. "Nettlesplash, Firepaw?"

"See you all later," Nettlesplash nodded, while Firepaw sprang to his feet, ready to go. The trio the split off, heading towards the fallen tree and over the river.

"This way," Leafstar motioned with her tail to the top of the gorge. "We'll start by checking the Twolegplace first."

Ebonyclaw nodded while Hawkpaw stood up to get going. Leafstar lead the way past the warriors' and her own dens, and out onto the plains. The twolegplace stood as a stark contrast from the night sky, yellow lights shining out from their nests.

Hawkpaw couldn't help but gasp at the sight. The Twolegplace made its own light that didn't come from the sun or moon?! How? Could they use it?

"This is your first time seeing the Twolegplace at night, right?" Ebonyclaw remarked amusedly. "Quite a sight, isn't it?"

"I didn't know Twolegs could make their own light," the brown apprentice breathed. "Do they use magic or something?"

"I'm honestly not all too sure about that," Ebonyclaw chuckled. "I've lived with Twolegs my entire life and I have yet to understand how or why they do half the things they do. Doesn't make them any less endearing in my opinion, though."

"The Twolegplace is even more dangerous at night, however," Nightheart rumbled. "I have experience from that. We should be careful when we patrol here."

"You do?" Hawkpaw questioned.

"I was a kittypet when I was born," the black tom murmured. "But was abandoned as a kit. Before I joined the clan, I lived as a stray there. So I know what I'm talking about."

"Oh…" Hawkpaw trailed off, not sure what else to say at the abrupt revelation.

Following Leafstar, the trio continued on in silence towards the Twolegplace and along the fenceline, setting markers every so often, making the stench of the border even stronger as to warn off any potential invaders. Soon, they were nearing the end of the Twolegplace and were about to turn into the forest when Nightheart suddenly stopped, almost running into Ebonyclaw as he did so.

"Kittypets," he hissed, and before Hawkpaw could question him, another voice, this one much louder and more confident, joined in.

"Well, well, well! Look what we have here! Four cats wandering in the middle of the night!"

Hawkpaw bit back a yelp of surprise, and found himself pushed backwards by Leafstar as an unfamiliar voice spoke, strong and commanding. She unsheathed her claws and fluffed out her fur protectively as two kittypets, just as Nightheart had predicted, came into view, up above them on a fence. One was a dark tabby tom with piercing green eyes, and the other a light gray-and-white patched tom with amber eyes. Both wore collars and reeked of violence.

"Pasha. Hera." Nightheart hissed, yellow eyes flashing in recognition as he growled. "Aren't you two a little bit too far out from your territory?"

"Who are you?" The light gray she-cat tilted her head, not seeming to recognize him. However, the brown tabby did, and laughed outright.

"Luke? Is that you?" He snickered, then turned to the she-cat. "Oh, look, it's Luke, Hera! Remember him? The little kit who was always scrounging for scraps?"

Hera blinked, then snickered. "You've grown! I hardly even recognize you! Have you finally found someone who'll actually feed you? More fox-dung cats who actually might like you?"

"His name is Nightheart," Ebonyclaw hissed. "And he has been part of Skyclan for moons. If you want to pick a fight with him, you're going to have to pick a fight with us first!"

"Gladly!" Pasha yowled, and he leapt off of the fence and onto the daylight warrior. Ebonyclaw screeched in surprise and clawed at her opponent's' ears as Hera leapt at Nightheart. However, she found herself intercepted by Leafstar, and the two began to battle fiercely as Nightheart rushed to help Ebonyclaw.

However, before Hawkpaw could leap in to help his clanmates, a large weight barrelled into his side, and he screeched, lashing out blindly as his claws scored on the flank of a longhaired cat. His insides turned to ice as he caught sight of five more cats joining the fight.

"Leafstar!" He cried. "There's more of them! We're outnumbered!"

The cat he had scratched pounced on him before he could continue, and Hawkpaw ducked, rolling over to the side to dodge him. He hissed, raising the hairs along his spine to try and appear as threatening as possible as another cat joined his fight with the longhaired tom, a sandy-colored she-cat with oddly colored blue-gray eyes.

Fear curled in his belly, and Hawkpaw risked a glance over his shoulder to see Leafstar, Nightheart, and Ebonyclaw embroiled in battle with the other five cats. He wasn't getting any help here.

"Oh, he's barely more than a kit," The sandy she-cat purred maliciously. "Let's show this cat who's boss, Percy."

"Gladly, Annabeth," the longhaired tom responded, and they launched themselves at Hawkpaw, who bounded over to the side, trying to not to get caught between the two kittypets. Annabeth—really, what kind of name was that? Hawkpaw shook the thought out of his head before he let it distract him—simply laughed and turned to chase him, the darkness making her seem overlarged in the moonlight. Now completely terrified, he chose to follow the first instinct that rose up in him and bolted, trying to get away from these two huge cats.

His paws skimmed the ground as he sprinted away. Right behind him, he felt the footsteps of cats and a laugh that signalled that Percy and Annabeth were following him. Ears flat and gasping for breath, he soon crashed into the forest treeline, the two kittypets hot on his heels.

However, Hawkpaw had never been the fastest runner, especially not in the forest, where the branches and thorns were tearing tufts of fur out of his coat left and right. Soon, he tired, and the moment he faltered, his pursuers were on him.

Two paws slammed into his hindquarters, and the Skyclan apprentice shrieked, lashing behind him with and unsheathed paw, just barely missing Percy's face. The tom cackled as Annabeth slammed into his side. Hawkpaw set his paws on the ground, and trying to take advantage of his large size like Leafstar had been teaching him in training. Thankfully, Annabeth seemed to be slightly on the smaller side, and he was able to take the brunt of her attack and push her back, just in time to catch Percy leaping at him.

Hawkpaw rolled away in the same move he had used earlier, pouncing up and tackling the longhair. He bit the first spot he could find before Percy threw him off and slashed at his muzzle, drawing blood. Before he could react, Annabeth attacked from behind. Hawkpaw attempted to back-kick her, but she held on fastly as Percy tackled him.

_I shouldn't have run away,_ the brown tabby realised. _Now I'm separated from the group and completely on my own. How much of a mouse-brain am I?!_

Cursing his cowardice, Hawkpaw turned and rolled, trying to dislodge his attackers. When that didn't work, he bucked upwards with off his might, successfully smashing Annabeth into a nearby tree. The she-cat yowled, and the Skyclan apprentice took his chance and sliced a paw downwards on Percy, scratching his muzzle. The tom lunged at him, and remembering one of the moves Leafstar had taught him recently, a tough one he had just mastered, he leaped to meet him, aiming for his ears. His fangs closed triumphantly around one, and he yanked as hard as he could, before Percy scratched at his open belly and forced him to let go.

The two toms backed away from each other slowly, Percy hosting a new, deep nick in his right ear. _That's going to scar,_ Hawkpaw thought, a brief flash of pride flaring inside of him before fading as quickly as it had come when Annabeth stood up, shaking out her head from the blow she had suffered.

"I think it's time we take you seriously, kit," Percy hissed. He and Annabeth hissed, ready to attack, and Hawkpaw braced himself for the worst.

"Get away from him!"

Before either of them could react, a dark shape sped out of the shadows, slamming itself into Annabeth. The she-cat yowled in surprise, too caught off guard to react properly.

As Hawkpaw watched in shock, another form, this one black-and-white, joined the first one, attacking Percy. The shapes slashed at and ganged up on the two kittypets, overwhelming them quickly with their superior fighting moves and overall skill.

Soon, the two kittypets were sent racing away in fear from the two dark shapes.

Hawkpaw flattened his ears when he realised that he was now alone with the two shapes he now realised were cats. The first cat, a jet-black tom with a white tail-tip, turned to face him.

"Are you alright?" He asked, breathing deeply. "You seemed to be in trouble there. I hope those kittypets didn't hurt you too bad."

"I-I'm alright," Hawkpaw stammered, still in shock. "Um… thank you?"

"Wow, that was awesome!"

The brown tabby jumped as two smaller shapes joined them, probably just a little bit younger than him. The first was a gray tabby tom with piercing blue eyes that shone in the moonlight; trailing more nervously behind him was pale ginger she-cat. Both were excited and slightly nervous, though the she-cat showed more of the latter emotion.

"You really did a number on them! When will we be that good?"

"Soon enough," the second tom spoke, a black-and-white tom who looked old enough to be in the elder's den. He turned to Hawkpaw, who lowered his head submissively. Were these cats friendly? He wanted to think so, but what if they just wanted to kill him themselves? "Are you hurt, young one?"

The brown tabby then became distinctly aware that his tail and right flank were stinging painfully. He hurriedly turned and began grooming himself, wincing at the taste of his blood. After a moment, he turned back to them.

"Who are you?" He asked. "I'm Hawkpaw. Why did you save me?"

"Hawkpaw?" The black tom blinked, and he and the black-and-white tom shared a look. "That's a clan name."

"Yes…" Hawkpaw trailed off, still wary. "I'm an apprentice of Skyclan. Who are you and how do you know about us?"

"I'm Riley! And this is my sister, Bella!" The gray tabby piped up, eyes shining excitedly. "I'm so glad we've finally found you! We can become warriors now, right?" He turned to the older toms for their approval.

"Only if they accept you. Only then, yes, you can become warriors," the black and white tom mewed, sending Riley a stern look. The black tom stepped forwards, looking Hawkpaw straight in the eye.

"Barley and I have come a long way to talk to your leader," he announced respectfully. "My name is Ravenpaw. I am a former member of Thunderclan, and one of Firestar's closest friends."

* * *

**Ravenpaw and Barley make their appearances, with Riley and Bella in tow. Leave a review and let me know what you think!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Not much to say this week, other than my usual request to review/follow/favorite. Thanks for sticking with me :-).**

**Reviews:**

**Olivewhisker**—Hey, a new reviewer! Thanks for stopping by. Yes, Ravenpaw's Farewell is a tie-in to this story and pretty much canon except for the timing of Ravenpaw's death (he'll stick around for a little while longer because plot). The characters introduced in this mini-arc of sorts, however, will be most present in the next book, _Divided Future_, so it you like Barley I think you'll like what I do with him then. And don't worry about the main villain. If you like Darktail, I'm certain you'll like the villain of _Secrets of the Past_ and _Divided Future_ ;).

* * *

**Chapter 9:**

"What?" Hawkpaw's mind whirled. This tom used to be a part of Thunderclan? He was a friend of Firestar? _The_ Thunderclan? _The _Firestar?

The black tom—Raven_paw_, Hawkpaw noted the apprentice suffix, though this tom was old enough to be a senior warrior—nodded.

"I understand if you don't believe me," he cut himself off abruptly, wincing at some internal pain. Barley came to his side worriedly, but Ravenpaw waved him off with the flick of his tail. "But these two cats—" he gestured to Riley and Bella, the former of whom grinned while the latter smiled more timidly. "Have long expressed their desires to join a clan. They used to be kittypets, but have been training for a couple days now and are progressing nicely. Where is your leader?"

"Leader?" Hawkpaw then started, horror seeping into his veins. "Oh, no! I was on a moonhigh patrol and we were ambushed! I was separated! I need to get back to them!"

Barley nodded. "I see," he hummed. "Lead the way, young one. We'll follow and help in any way we can. But not you two!" He sent a look at Riley and Bella, who had taken on hopeful expressions. "You stay out of the way."

Hawkpaw wasted no more time, quickly bounding back the way he had come. His ear-tips burned with embarrassment. In his own fear, he had completely forgotten that Leafstar, Nightheart, and Ebonyclaw were fighting five on three! _Some apprentice I turned out to be…_

While they ran, he felt Ravenpaw's eyes on his pelt. The black tom was obviously in a lot of pain, his mind was awash with it, but he refused to back down or complain, and Hawkpaw felt a twinge of respect for the tom. Now if only he'd stop staring at him like he was someone he hadn't seen in a long time…

Soon, they were out of the treeline, and Hawkpaw scanned the area, trying to catch a glimpse of his mentor (Ebonyclaw and Nightheart were lost causes, with their black pelts and all). A trace of a sharp Skyclan scent entered his mouth, and he turned sharply to the left, spotting a white-and-brown shape next to two much darker ones on top of one the small rises on the plains. There were no other cats with them, much to his relief. As soon as he spotted them, they seemed to find him as well, Leafstar leading the way as the trio ran up to the group of cats.

"Hawkpaw!" the leader of Skyclan admonished. "Don't run off like that! We've been looking for you."

"Sorry, Leafstar…" Hawkpaw flattened his ears. "I got afraid and just… ran."

The white-dappled she-cat sighed. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. This was your first battle and we were completely overwhelmed. I haven't taught you how to fight two-on-one yet." She looked over to the other four cats. "Who are these cats, Hawkpaw? Why are they here?"

"Oh! Um this is Riley, Bella, Barley, and Ravenpaw. They saved me from the two cats who were fighting me. They wanted to talk to you. Ravenpaw says he's from Thunderclan and a friend of Firestar's." A twinge of skepticism seeped into his voice to alert his mentor that he wasn't sure whether to trust him or not.

Leafstar blinked, surprised, and turned to face Ravenpaw. "You are?"

"Yes," the black tom responded, bowing his head respectively. "I know I have no proof of this, but I beg for you to at least hear us out."

Ebonyclaw gave the group of four a good look-over. "Are you sure we can trust them?" she questioned. "They may be with the rogues, or even those kittypets we just fought."

Nightheart shook his head. "Not the kittypets," he mewed. "They aren't smart enough."

"But aren't you a kittypet?" Riley questioned, looking pointedly at Ebonyclaw's purple collar. "Why would you be afraid of us?"

Ebonyclaw sent him a half-offended, half-amused look, while Barley shook his head in embarrassment.

"Come," Leafstar sighed. "You can stay with us for the night, at least. Hawkpaw, when we get back, you and Firepaw can show them to one of the smaller caves to sleep for the night. It should be big enough."

Ravenpaw nodded his head thankfully, and they began to make their way back to camp. Hawkpaw couldn't help but feel a twinge of excitement as he did so. Wait until his littermates heard about this!

* * *

"No way," Featherpaw breathed, looking astonished and slightly jealous. "You mean to say that you fought against two cats at once _and_ found a clan cat from Thunderclan?"

"He says," Hawkpaw hummed, before taking a large bite out of the shrew he had taken for breakfast. Morning had come, and he had hurried to relay his story to Honeypaw (who had just been released from the medicine den on the condition that she didn't push herself too hard) and Featherpaw.

"And if he is telling the truth, I wonder why he came all this way to us," Honeypaw murmured. Her eyes were still clouded with grief, and the other apprentices had been stepping on thorns while around her in fear of upsetting her.

"Well, there were these two younger cats with him," Hawkpaw mused. "He was saying something about them joining the clan."

"So we're getting new clanmates?" Featherpaw wondered. "I wonder what they'll be like."

Honeypaw shrugged. "Depends. Nightheart, when he joined, was only an apprentice for a moon or so because he already knew how to hunt and fight. Juniperpaw, though, he was a _nightmare_ when he first became an apprentice. Brambleclaw really had his paws full with trying to teach him the code and how to properly work in a clan. That's why he's going through the normal apprenticeship even though he's already the age of a young warrior."

"I don't know," Hawkpaw replied. "The tom, Riley, was pretty cool, but he seemed to be really… enthusiastic. Bella, the she-cat, was more quiet, so I didn't get as good of a read on her."

"Wow, the great Hawkpaw can't read somebody right away?" Featherpaw jested. "This Bella must be a grand mystery."

Hawkpaw flicked his tail at his sister. Truth was, he hadn't focused on his power that much last night; things had been going far too fast for him to really think about it.

"Hawkpaw!"

The three apprentices looked up to see Leafstar, Sharpclaw at her side, calling out to him.

"Come with us," Leafstar continued. "We're visiting our guests."

"Coming!" Hawkpaw replied, standing up. He pushed the rest of his shrew to Featherpaw. "Here, you can have the rest. I'll tell you how this goes."

"Yum," Featherpaw responded, already beginning to eat.

"Bye," Honeypaw added.

Hawkpaw nodded to them and rushed off to meet Leafstar, who had waited patiently. Sharpclaw? Not so much, but at least he didn't say anything. The now expected resentment dripping off his pelt, flecked with grief, said enough about that.

"What do you need me for?" He asked, ignoring the deputy, still upset with how he had been treated the other day.

"Just come with us to see Ravenpaw," Leafstar responded. "They should be awake by now. You'll be validating the story they gave you with the one he tells us now."

"Of course." Hawkpaw dipped his head, allowing his leader and deputy to pass, before following them himself. The cave he had shown their visitors to the previous night was higher up on the gorge and slightly harder to reach, so it took them a minute or to the get there.

Leafstar ducked into the cave first, Sharpclaw and Hawkpaw following. Inside, Riley and Bella were already awake, trying out very basic battle moves against each other while Barley watched over them. Ravenpaw, however, was still asleep, curled in a makeshift nest in the back. When they came into view, Barley motioned for the two younger kits to stop before bowing his head respectfully.

"Leafstar. Hawkpaw. And…?" He trailed off as his eyes landed on the dark ginger tom, silently asking for his name.

"Sharpclaw. Leafstar's deputy," he responded neutrally. Barley nodded.

"I'm sorry about Ravenpaw, but he hasn't been feeling very well for the last couple days," he apologised. Hawkpaw could sense his sincerity. "May he sleep for a little longer?"

"Of course, as long as you can tell us what we need to know," Leafstar responded respectfully. "I would like to hear your story and how you arrived here. How do you know about Thunderclan, and what prompted you to find us instead of them?"

"It's a long story," Riley piped up. Bella shushed him.

"You see, Thunderclan and the other three clans, Shadowclan, Riverclan, and Windclan, were forced to leave their territories in the forest," Barley began. Leafstar stiffened, worry and shock flashing off of her, and he hurried to continue. "Twolegs were expanding their territory into the forest, and the clans couldn't sustain themselves any longer on the land they had left. Ravenpaw and I, we lived nearby and saw them off. Firestar was leading them, last I heard of him he was alive and well."

Leafstar nodded, relief trickling off her pelt, and Hawkpaw felt a rush of excitement. He was meeting two cats who knew the great Firestar!

"A while later, my sister, Violet, gave birth to Bella and Riley," Barley continued. "They've grown up on stories about the clans their entire lives, and have long expressed their wish to join one. However, we had no idea how far away the other clans were. Ravenpaw had heard about Skyclan from Firestar, so here we are. If you will allow it, Riley and Bella can become valuable assets to you. Ravenpaw and I plan to return home as soon as we can."

Leafstar nodded slowly. "Is this what they told you?" She asked her apprentice. Hawkpaw nodded, certain of his decision since none of the visitors were malicious at all.

"I should let you know that we've had trouble with rogues recently," Sharpclaw spoke up. "If Ravenpaw is sick, then it won't be a good idea for you to head back just yet. We can't guarantee your safety beyond our borders. Our medicine cat and her apprentice can watch over your friend until he recovers."

Barley nodded thankfully. "Thank you very much," he responded politely.

"So can we join the clan now?" Riley asked, hopeful. Bella nodded, also wanting to know.

"Partially," Leafstar responded. "We have a rule here that no visitors can learn battle moves until they've been here for a moon, and we'll have to wait a while until the clan grows used to you to apprentice you, but yes, you're on the right path."

"You'll have to work very hard, however," Sharpclaw challenged. "And not everyone will accept you because you aren't clanborn."

"We won't let you down," Bella replied, determined. Riley nodded vigorously in agreement.

Barley turned to waken Ravenpaw. "Come on, old friend. Leafstar is allowing you to go see the medicine cat."

The black tom stirred, blinking his eyes open. Upon landing on the three Skyclan cats, he sat up straight and hurriedly began grooming himself, embarrassment, pain, and frustration flickering off of him.

"You didn't wake me up?" he asked his friend.

"You needed the sleep," Barley responded. "Come on, you need to get better before we can go home."

"Hawkpaw, can you show our guests to the medicine den?" Leafstar asked. "Sharpclaw and I have to set out this morning's patrols."

"Of course, Leafstar," Hawkpaw nodded. Leafstar smiled gently and left the cave, Sharpclaw right behind her.

"Here, follow me," he told the four other cats. "The medicine den is near the bottom of the gorge, so the incline will be a bit steep."

Barley nodded as Ravenpaw stood up shakily. Hawkpaw exited the cave once he made sure they were ready, stepping down slowly to make sure they could keep up.

"Wow! This is so cool!" Riley exclaimed, bounding in front of them and into camp. Bella followed soon after; although she was more quiet, it was apparent that she was just as adventurous.

"Riley! Bella!" Barley called. "Stay with Hawkpaw! The clan cats don't know you yet!"

The two younger cats groaned in unison, disappointed. They trudged back to Hawkpaw, who laughed quietly at their behavior.

The camp paused as they came into sight. By now, everyone had stopped their daily activities to meet the new visitors. Hawkpaw caught a glimpse of Tadpolekit and Rustlekit even stopping their playfight to meet them.

"Who are you?" the gray kits questioned excitedly. Tadpolekit herself was extremely excited, practically vibrating in her place.

"Where did you come from? Are you here to join the clan? How long did it take to get here?" the she-kit blurted out so fast that they could barely make it out.

"Hello, young ones." Barley stepped forwards. "What are your names?"

"I'm Rustlekit," said kit responded proudly. "And this is my friend, Tadpolekit."

"Well, it's nice to meet you Rustlekit. I'm Barley, and these are my friends Ravenpaw, Bella, and Riley. Bella and Riley want to join your clan."

"Wow," Tadpolekit breathed. "That's so cool! Mama's told me about rogues joining, but I've never seen it myself."

"Tadpolekit! Rustlekit! Stop bothering the guests! I thought I told you to stay in the nursery!" Clovertail bounded forwards, nosing her foster son and his friend away.

"Aw, we were only looking, Mama!" Rustlekit complained.

"No buts," the light brown-and-white she-cat herded them away from her tail. Barley purred.

"You have fine kits," he rumbled. "Much better than the ones I got got stuck with."

"Hey!" Riley protested. "We're not kits!"

"Sometimes I wonder."

"Ravenpaw! Help me out here!"

But the black tom had frozen suddenly, gazing off towards the fresh-kill pile. Shock rolled off of him, so strong it almost knocked Hawkpaw off of his feet. He looked over to see his father, in the middle getting his breakfast, staring back at them, shocked and fearful. Featherpaw was with him, feeling confused.

For a moment, everything was silent. Then, Ravenpaw spoke, voice shaky.

"Brambleclaw?"

* * *

**Two cliffhangers in a row, haha. See y'all next week, and tell me what you think!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Thank you all for the _four_ reviews we got on the last chapter! I really appreciate the attention this story is getting, and I hope this chapter works well with you.**

**On a different note, I want to ask for your opinion on something. I'm currently planning the main plots of the last two books of the _Fire and Tiger _series, _Fifth _and _Darkening Stars_. In order to make sure these books are as satisfying as possible, I wanted to ask you this: What did you like and _not_ like about _Omen of the Stars_? It could be anything, from Dovewing to a particular book, and so on. If I feel a certain opinion has merit, there is a very strong chance it'll be implemented in the series in one way or another. Thanks in advance!**

**Reviews:**

**Olivewhisker**—Brambleclaw "left" the clans around the time of Sunrise.

**Embers**—I _really_ didn't like how Skyclan was handled in _Ravenpaw's Farewell_ (loved everything else though) and _A Vision of Shadows _(at least in the first three books I've read). Leafstar, to me, has always been a diplomat-strategist leader who avoids fighting, and who is balanced by her more battle-hungry (is that the right word?) deputy Sharpclaw. Anyways what I'm saying is that Leafstar is awesome and Skyclan deserves better.

And... don't be too disappointed with this chapter. Hawkpaw and his siblings are a bit young to know that story. I will confirm, however, that Leafstar, Sharpclaw, and Echosong know of Brambleclaw's past.

As for Darktail, I think he was an _epic_ villain (did you _see_ what he did to Riverclan?), but I will agree that the Darktail/Skyclan relationship was not handled well. Skyclan's a big clan and know their territory very well. I don't think they would've fallen to Darktail as quickly or easily as they did. And thank you for reading the summaries on my profile! I'm rather proud of them.

**Kuroimori (Chapter 8)**—I was running out of ideas for names the rogues would have, and was re-reading _Percy Jackson_ at the time. Thus the references ;P. And Ravenpaw will soon know the truth of Brambleclaw's past...

**Kuroimori (Chapter 9)**—It could. Or it might not be. *Laughs*

* * *

**Chapter 10:**

Featherpaw gasped as she looked over to her father. She'd just gone to ask her mentor about a specific battle move she'd been struggling to learn. How did this loner know her father? The loner—Ravenpaw, she reminded herself (now that she thought about it, that was a clan name)—moved forwards, and soon was only two or three fox-lengths away from Brambleclaw, looking as if he expected the tom to disappear any moment.

"Ravenpaw," her father finally spoke, emotion choking his voice.

"Here, let's talk in private." Everyone turned to see Cherrytail quickly bounding over to them from the warrior's den. "It's alright; Brambleclaw met Ravenpaw back when they were loners."

The other cats watching seemed to believe the tortoiseshell she-cat, spreading out and going back to their usual duties. Cherrytail sent Hawkpaw a look, and he hurried to lead Ravenpaw's friends away. Featherpaw blinked, still confused.

"Featherpaw?" Cherrytail's voice was gentle. "Can you give us some time alone? It's been a long time since we've seen Ravenpaw. He's an old friend."

"This is your daughter?" Ravenpaw put in, looking even more surprised, if that was even possible. "Yours and…?"

"Cherrytail." Brambleclaw waved his tail towards the tortoiseshell. "We have four. Tawnypaw, Firepaw, Hawkpaw, and Featherpaw."

"Firepaw, after…"

"Yes, after him. I'll tell you everything in a moment."

"You seem to have made quite a life for yourself here." Was that hint of betrayal in his voice? "Certainly you are here to stay."

"Yes," Brambleclaw replied slowly. "Come. I'll tell you the story." He looked over the black tom, closer this time, and seeing something Featherpaw couldn't identify herself. "Are you alright, Ravenpaw? You look… different."

"I haven't been feeling well lately. It may be a late case of whitecough. Leafstar's been kind enough to offer her medicine cat to help."

"This late? We've been in newleaf for some time now." Brambleclaw shook his head. "Nevermind that. Featherpaw, Rockshade is taking you out for battle training with Hawkpaw, Firepaw, and their mentors. I suggest you go and meet them."

"But you've never told me this story!" Featherpaw immediately protested. Was this a clue to what her father had been talking about when he spoke about Firestar and his kin yesterday? "I want to hear it, too!"

Brambleclaw's eyes flickered, but he didn't cave. "How I joined Skyclan is a story for when you're much older," he sighed, refusing gently. "Which will hopefully be a long while away yet. Now go and see your littermates."

"But I want to—"

"_No_, Featherpaw. It's… not the best story to hear." He stood up. "I mean it. Go to your training." Motioning to Cherrytail and Ravenpaw, he padded off to speak with them.

Featherpaw hissed to herself. She was his daughter; why couldn't he trust her with this? Part of her wanted desperately to just ignore his warnings and go spy on them, but then Rockshade would notice her missing. And she was anxious to train, especially since her mentor hadn't been coping so well with the loss of Bouncefire.

_And this would be a good chance to beat up Hawkpaw without Sharpclaw breathing down my neck…_

That sold it for her. Her father's past could wait. After all, it wasn't like it was really that important. He was here now, and that was all that mattered to her.

* * *

"Heh. I win."

Featherpaw scowled, pressed uncomfortably into the sandy ground of the training hollow. She scowled, trying to push herself up to try and gain an upper hand against her brother, but he was much too heavy for her. Sighing, she relaxed in submission, frustrated. Of course Hawkpaw had beaten her. He was some kind of prodigy when it came to fighting.

Her dream from last night flickered in her mind, to when Hawkfrost had taught her that new hunting move. Maybe he could teach her a couple fighting ones, to get the upper paw on her brother.

"Good job, Hawkpaw, Featherpaw," Leafstar praised, stepping forwards. "You both put up an excellent fight against each other. However, Hawkpaw, you aren't relying as much as you should be on your raw power. You focus more on defence and speed, the latter of which you don't have, which is easy to exploit. Try to put more force into your blows next time."

"Yes, Leafstar," Hawkpaw responded with a yawn. He was still tired from the night patrol and the battle last night, Featherpaw noted. Anger flared up in her belly, tinged with embarrassment. She had lost to him when he had gotten only a half-night's worth of sleep! "You did a great job too, Featherpaw," he continued, looking over to his sister with an odd, knowing gaze. "You almost had me with that pin earlier. There's no need to be angry."

The brown-and-white she-cat blinked, not as much surprised as she was exasperated. There he went again, going and reading her mind like some kind of physic. It was getting annoying, how well he could read her.

To her brother, she said nothing, shaking her head and turning towards her own mentor for some kind of criticism or praise. But Rockshade said nothing from his spot on the sidelines, only nodding approvingly and muttering a half-hearted "good job" before spacing out yet again, like he had been all day. Featherpaw sighed and lowered her ears. There went any chance for her getting approval from her usually robust mentor.

"Featherpaw, you fought very well," Leafstar's voice drug her out of her thoughts. "But you're the opposite of Hawkpaw. You rely more on strength than speed, when you are much faster than your brother. Try to make your paws move quicker."

"Alright…" Featherpaw replied noncommittally, turning back to them. She found herself missing the old version of Rockshade. Leafstar seemed to notice this, sending her a sympathetic look.

"Don't worry too much about your mentor," she murmured, soft enough so that the subject of their conversation couldn't hear. "He's going through a hard time right now, but he'll soon recover. After all, Bouncefire is in Starclan now, safe and sound."

"Still," Featherpaw unsheathed her claws. "It's not fair! Why did he have to die? Those dumb rogues have messed everything up!"

"Speaking of," Nettlesplash spoke up to change the subject, Firepaw still at his side. "Has Waspwhisker's patrol returned yet? Ashenkit, Owlkit, and Flightkit are getting really worried, especially when I last saw them in the nursery. They've never gone this long without their parents before."

"No. I was expecting them to have returned last night, but they have yet to make contact with us. If they aren't back by late afternoon, then we'll send out a second patrol to try and find them."

"Have they gotten into trouble?" Firepaw questioned, worried. "Will they be safe?"

"Of course they will," the pale brown tom soothed his apprentice. "Waspwhisker is one of the best warriors in the clan. He'll keep them out of trouble. Perhaps they've been delayed."

"If you say so," the sandy tom responded, looking down.

"Anyways, I think it's your turn to try training again," Nettlesplash changed the subject skillfully. "Try fighting against Featherpaw. I'm sure you'll be able to try out your new moves against her."

Featherpaw couldn't help but wrinkle her nose at the idea. Firepaw? If he was going up against a mouse he probably couldn't win. He just wasn't a fighter. Or much of a hunter, if she thought about it. He was behind both her and Hawkpaw in those aspects.

Her brother seemed to be having the same line of thought. "But I'd only lose," he protested. "Can't I just practice on my own?"

"You're going to have to learn how to actually fight eventually," Nettlesplash responded sternly. "Not this light batting with your paws that you're calling battle moves."

"But what if I hurt someone?"

"Hawkpaw and Featherpaw were going much harder on each other, and they're both fine. Your claws will be sheathed, so there's no danger."

Firepaw looked almost afraid at the prospect of battle training, but thankfully, he was interrupted when Hollypaw and his mentor, Patchfoot, came bounding into the training area. Leafstar looked surprised, as did Hawkpaw and Nettlesplash. Featherpaw blinked, confused. Why were Hollypaw and Patchfoot here? Weren't they supposed to go on a hunting patrol around now?

"Patchfoot?" Leafstar addressed her eldest warrior, stepping towards the ginger-and-white warrior. "What's going on? Has something happened?"

"The patrol is back," Patchfoot replied, worried. "But… not all of them."

The atmosphere turned to ice, and Leafstar spoke again, this time much quieter.

"Who?"

"Macgyver and Birdpaw," Hollypaw responded when Patchfoot took a moment to compose himself. "And the rest… well, they aren't in good shape. There's someone new with them, too. Sharpclaw's with him now, but he's been asking for our leader. And that's you, so we came looking."

"We left as soon as they arrived," Patchfoot put in. "Come, we have to hurry."

Leafstar nodded, but paused, and turned around to face Nettlesplash. "Nettlesplash, you take Firepaw and Hawkpaw and scout out the border where the patrol would've returned. Make sure that there's no one… unsavory… in our territory. Don't mention this to anyone when we're in camp, so this rogue that's arrived can't tell that you've gone. Don't engage if you find anyone—come straight back to me."

"Yes, Leafstar," Nettlesplash and Hawkpaw responded. Firepaw simply gave a terrified nod, obviously intimidated by being given such an important task.

"I'll go, too." Everyone looked to see Rockshade stand up determinedly. "Those rogues killed my brother."

"You are not to attack them," the Skyclan leader responded. "I've known you since you were a kit, Rockshade. You are not allowed to fight them yet. We have no idea of their full capabilities."

"I know," the black tom replied. Nettlesplash gave them a worried look, then he bounded away and towards the forest, Hawkpaw, Firepaw, and Rockshade following him.

Featherpaw's eyes followed them envyingly. Why did Rockshade pay attention to rogues but not to her? The clan didn't need him to look for rogues, but she needed him for training!

Her mind flickered back to her dream.

Perhaps…

"Featherpaw!" Leafstar's voice jolted her out of her train of thought. "We need to go. You and I have been training on our own, got it?"

"Yeah," she replied, dragging her eyes away from her clanmates as they vanished down the gorge, in the direction of the forest. "I'm coming!"

They hurriedly rushed back to camp, Leafstar naturally taking the lead and Patchfoot right at her leader's side. Featherpaw found herself next to Hollypaw, but no words were passed in the tense atmosphere.

The camp was just as tense as the journey there. Passing by the Rockpile and Leafstar's den, the brown-and-white apprentice caught sight of Tawnypaw and Echosong hurriedly rushing to treat what must've been the patrol's wounds. Creekfeather, sitting outside of the den, had a deep nick in his ear, one that was sure to scar, but her seemed to have gotten off lightly. Sagenose was also there, covered in scratches. Briefly, the sisters' eyes met, and Tawnypaw sent her sister a worried look, before breaking the moment and reaching for marigold.

Featherpaw also turned away and followed her companions to the fresh-kill pile. Standing there were Waspwhisker, Plumwillow, Sharpclaw, and an unfamiliar cat she didn't recognize. He had an unassuming plain brown pelt, but the look was ruined with a splattering with scars. He also had piercing leaf-green eyes, filled with some emotion that Featherpaw couldn't identify. Whatever it was, it made her shiver.

The brown tom and Sharpclaw were conversing heatedly. Well, Sharpclaw was. His claws were unsheathed and digging into the dirt, but he refrained from attacking—just barely. Plumwillow and Waspwhisker, sporting several cuts themselves (though they were in much better shape than Sagenose and Creekfeather) were watching the exchange uneasily.

"Sharpclaw!" Leafstar called, and Featherpaw noted that she had never seen her leader so serious before. She looked almost regal in the midday sunlight, eyes glistening with anger and malice towards the cat who dared to hurt her clan. The younger apprentice couldn't help but feel a wave of admiration for her as she did so. This must have been why Firestar chose her to be leader...

The dark ginger tom turned to his leader and dipped his head stiffly. "This is Forest, Leafstar. He has something he wants to… discuss… with you."

"If you have the time," the brown tom put in, oddly polite. Featherpaw was abruptly reminded of Moonlight's odd encounter with them in the battle against Sparrowpelt's patrol. Both were very formal despite the stressing situation. Moreover, Forest looked completely in control of the situation, despite sitting completely defenseless in a gorge where two dozen cats would be glad to slit his throat.

"I happen to be free," Leafstar replied after a moment, her face perfectly composed to hide any emotion on her face. "Waspwhisker, Sharpclaw, you two and I will talk to this tom. The rest of you are free to do as you please."

It was a blatant dismissal. Patchfoot bowed his head, and Featherpaw was quick to follow his example. She followed them as the rest of the warriors took their own leave. A glance behind her confirmed that the three warriors and rogue were walking off towards Leafstar's den.

"What happened, Plumwillow?" Patchfoot questioned softly once they were a safe distance away. They all sat down under a rocky overhang, in the shade. "Where is Macgyver and Birdpaw?"

"These aren't normal rogues," the dark gray she-cat responded with a shiver. "But they are certainly no clan."

"Then what would they be?" Hollypaw questioned skeptically, blinking his amber eyes.

"I don't know," Plumwillow responded. "We never got the chance to ask. You see, the patrol had been going normally. It was early afternoon when we were suddenly ambushed with a group with around twice as many cats as we did. I never had a chance to run for help. They knew that we were coming. In moments, the battle was over and we were captured."

"Wait. So they knew how to fight?" Patchfoot asked. "They weren't just your normal rogues off the street?"

"Yes. They were organized, too. We didn't see much, but their camp was on a small hill surrounded by brambles. One way in and out from what I saw. They had queens, and even a healer, who they had make sure we didn't die." She motioned to a cut near her shoulder, which was still red. "He didn't treat us, though. When morning came, they brought us back, but made Macgyver and Birdpaw stay behind."

"Who was the tom you were with?" Featherpaw asked.

"He called himself Forest," Plumwillow responded. "He's one of their senior members, I think. He's come to ask for something in return for Macgyver and Birdpaw."

Before anyone could reply, there was a quick pitter-patter of feet, and the queen was overtaken with two gray and brown bundles of fur. The she-cat stumbled under their weight for a moment, then started purring.

"Mom! You're back!" Ashenkit cried, nuzzling her muzzle into her mother's flank. Plumwillow purred louder, giving Owlkit a quick lick on top of his head. "We thought you and Dad were gonna be gone forever!"

"What? Of course I wasn't!" The gray queen exclaimed. "Whoever gave you that idea?"

Owlkit shuffled his paws bashfully. "Rustlekit and Violetkit…" he murmured. Plumwillow sighed.

"I'll have to talk to Clovertail," she muttered. "Those two are becoming more trouble every day."

"Kits will be kits," Patchfoot commented. "Stormheart was much worse before she was apprenticed. I suggest you savor these moments."

"Oh, trust me, I am," Plumwillow responded, but it was easy to see the worry she housed for her kits.

"How was training?" Ashenkit asked, turning to Featherpaw. "What did you learn?"

"We were reviewing battle moves," the brown-and-white she-cat answered, pushing back the anger when she recalled Rockshade's neglect. "I beat Hawkpaw in battle practice."

"Really?" Owlkit breathed, looking amazed. Next to her, Hollypaw shook his head.

"Good for you," he chuckled, knowing of Featherpaw's bluff but not calling her out on it. "Practice hard when you're apprentices, and maybe you'll be able to defeat him as well."

"We can train now!" Ashenkit exclaimed, pouncing on her brother with a cry. Owlkit squealed and batted at her desperately, but the gray tabby had managed a basic hold to pin him down. "You can't beat me; Hollypaw's been teaching me moves!"

Everyone's eyes turned to the black-and-gray daylight apprentice, who licked his chest in embarrassment.

"Ashenkit, where's Flightkit?" Plumwillow asked, looking for her second daughter.

"She wanted—" the gray tabby grunted as Owlkit flipped her over and she began to struggle for dominance again. "To get a look at the rogue cat. She wanted to see someone not from the clan."

Plumwillow looked alarmed, but it was Patchfoot who stood up.

"I'll find her," the black-and-white tom suggested. "You stay here and wait for Sagenose."

The gray queen looked like she wanted to protest, then finally gave in and nodded.

"Thank you," she responded with a bow of her head. Patchfoot smiled at them.

"And don't worry," he continued. "Leafstar will get Birdpaw and Macgyver back. She won't rest until she does."

* * *

**And we have our first diplomatic(ish) interaction with the rogues! Have a good week and follow/favorite/review!**


	12. Chapter 11

**...I've honestly been a bit nervous about releasing this chapter for a while. You'll see why below, and I'll explain my thought processes at the end of the chapter. At the very least, I'm glad to finally be out of the 2,000-word chapter stage of the story, haha.**

**No reviews this week, so my question from Chapter 10 still stands. **

* * *

"Scent anything?" Leafstar's voice was barely more than a murmur on the wind. Next to her, Birdwing shook her head, her sleek black pelt rippling as she did so. Her ears flickered over to Tinycloud, who also shook her head. Hawkpaw shook his head silently as well, thankful for his brown tabby pelt that kept him at least partially camouflaged. His white paws and ear-tips were a bother, but not as bad as poor Tinycloud, who had to watch nearly every step she made with her snow-white pelt.

Leafstar treaded out on the branches first, paws confident and firm as she balanced multiple fox-lengths above the ground with a practiced ease that hinted at her seasons of experience in the trees. Birdwing soon followed out after her leader, and Leafstar noted this, nosing to a thick branch around two tail-lengths away. Bunching up her hind legs, she lept onto it easily and stepped back, making room for the black she-cat to follow her.

Two and a half moons had passed since Birdwing and Macgyver had been caught by the rogue group, and almost immediately after the fiasco, everyone had erupted into preparations for war and other changes that had been happening almost too fast for him to keep up with. No one was allowed to leave camp alone (which Featherpaw had protested, liking to explore on her own), patrols had to consist of at least four cats, and now there were two patrols that took place at night, with two permanent sentries keeping watch all night. Leafstar had complied with the rogue's demands, giving them something (no one knew exactly what) to get Birdwing and Macgyver back. Afterwards, Birdwing and Honeytail were both given their warrior names.

Hawkpaw followed tenderly after his mentor and friend. Doing his best to balance his rapidly growing body (already he was passing up all of his siblings in size and was very nearly at Brambleclaw's height) on the thinning branch, he leapt after the two, wobbling slightly before regaining his balance and stepping back to let Tinycloud take her jump. That was another change that had taken place. Leafstar had decided that it was time for Skyclan to live up to its name. More and more often, they were taking to the trees during their border patrols, keeping out of sight and scent of any possible enemies.

For the rogues, despite their mysteriousness, were not keeping quiet. Ever since their first sudden appearance and the murder of Bouncefire, they'd been attacking on and off at borders. Hawkpaw had even once found himself in a skirmish against them, and had fought a light gray tom. As a result, Skyclan had harkened back to their roots and began taking to the trees during border patrols. For the apprentices and those who weren't descended from the original Skyclan, it was a difficult transition. He'd had to practice for hours jumping from branch to branch under Leafstar's watchful eye before she had approved him for border patrols.

Leafstar brushed past him, jerking the brown tabby out of his thought as she raised her head and made another leap to the next tree. Birdwing followed, then Hawkpaw and Tinycloud, the process from earlier repeating itself until they came across one of their marking trees. Leafstar then descended to the ground gracefully, reset the scent marker, and returned to the branches. They were almost done by now, and Hawkpaw's belly rumbled at the thought of eating lunch after such a long morning.

Some more time passed, until they could just barely make out the rocky outcroppings of the gorge. Hawkpaw flexed his claws, eager to break the silence and go back to camp. Birdwing seemed to be thinking the same, impatience and hunger flashing off of her. Tinycloud was much more controlled outwardly, but even she was a bit relieved to have home in sight.

Leafstar seemed to notice this, and she purred good-naturedly.

"You can talk now," she announced. "Go on home."

Holding back a whoop, Hawkpaw bounded forwards excitedly, jumping easily down from the tree and onto the ground, Birdwing following close behind.

"Race you to the gorge!" The young warrior announced good-naturedly, already taking off. Hawkpaw laughed.

"You're on!" He called back, speeding to try and catch up, despite knowing he'd already lost the race. He'd never been a fast runner before and wasn't about to start now, but he ran anyways, determined to at least keep his old friend in sight. He was glad that she still found time to hang out with him and the other apprentices, despite now being a warrior. In only a couple of minutes, they had burst into camp, panting.

"You win again…" Hawkpaw gasped, hanging his head as he tried to catch his breath. Birdwing nudged him playfully.

"You bet I do," she chuckled. "Want to get something to eat?"

The brown tabby apprentice's belly rumbled in response, and Hawkpaw lowered his ears, slightly embarrassed. Birdwing didn't comment on it, and the walked over to the fresh-kill pile, now fully stocked from the morning's hunting patrols, as Tinycloud and Leafstar entered camp behind them. Birdwing's tail shot up as she caught sight of Hollypaw and Juniperpaw grabbing a small mouse and squirrel respectively, a flash of happiness shooting through her.

"Hollypaw! Juniperpaw!" Hawkpaw called, shooting Birdwing a knowing look. The black she-cat whacked him with her tail and lowered her ears slightly. It wasn't a secret to know that the newer warrior had developed a crush on the daylight apprentice in the last couple moons. Though Hawkpaw himself wasn't that interested in she-cats yet, he found it very amusing to tease Birdwing about her new crush.

"Hey Hawkpaw!" Juniperpaw called back, his voice slightly muffled around the hairy squirrel in his mouth. "Done with your patrol?"

"Finally," he responded with a sigh. "It took most of the morning to go through just half of the territory. Everything's gotten a lot slower since Leafstar decided to start going by tree instead of on the ground."

"At least you have Skyclan blood," Juniperpaw huffed as Hawkpaw grabbed a large pigeon off of the pile, angling his head to ask Birdwing if she wanted to share. She nodded. "I've been struggling just trying to keep up with you guys. Between the four of us, I much prefer staying on the ground."

"Well, you have Brambleclaw as a mentor," Birdwing spoke up as they padded to the rocky overhang where the apprentices usually ate. "So you're lucky in that regard. The tom's huge, so he probably finds it just as difficult as you to jump from branch to branch."

"Doesn't keep him from working me half to death," the yellow-eyed apprentice grumbled, plopping down on the ground and taking a large bite out of his squirrel.

"Don't complain, Juniperpaw," Hollypaw scolded as he sat down as well. "Brambleclaw's just trying to get you ready for your warrior assessments. They should be coming up in a couple days or so."

"I just can't help but feel as if I should be a warrior already, through!" Juniperpaw exclaimed. "I'm older than Harrybrook and Stormheart, you know. And they were made warriors almost four moons ago! I feel so out of place."

"Harrybrook and Stormheart were born in the clan and were raised with the code. You weren't."

"Trust me when I say that you needed to have the normal length of an apprenticeship," Birdwing added. "No one could stand you when you first joined the clan, Juniperpaw. It was only because of you father, Brackenfall, that we let you stay."

"I was not that bad!" Juniperpaw protested.

"Yes, you were," the other two apprentices and warrior deadpanned at him at the same time, before blinking in surprise and laughing at the coincidence. Juniperpaw, on the other paw, only huffed and tore out another chunk of squirrel while his friends laughed.

"Speaking of warrior ceremonies," Hollypaw spoke up after a couple moments, quickly composing himself after a few chuckles. "Ashenkit, Owlkit, and Flightkit are approaching their sixth moon, aren't they? They should be getting apprenticed around the same time you become a warrior."

"Oh, great. The apprentice's den is going to get crowded again," Hawkpaw huffed. "I mean, I'm happy for them and all, but I enjoyed having some leg room after Honeytail became a warrior."

"The downsides of having caves for dens," Juniperpaw put in. "You can't adjust them like you can if you have one made of brambles. It's one of the few things I miss from being a loner."

"Hey," Hawkpaw jerked as he swallowed a bite of pidgeon. "That reminds me. I've been wanting to ask this for a while: do any of you guys remember when my father joined the clan? I know he was a loner, but not much else."

Juniperpaw shook his head, as did Hollypaw.

"Sorry," the black tom apologized. "When I joined the clan, Juniperpaw was already his apprentice."

"I do," Birdwing spoke up. "I was really young, though. Around three moons old or so, so I don't remember much. I just recall him showing up one day with Seedtail and Cherrytail. Everyone was really excited at seeing Cherrytail—apparently she had gone missing for a while or something—so everyone focused on her. Your father and Seedtail just kind of slipped under the radar. Your parents were mates by then, I think, because Cherrytail joined the nursery around a couple days or so later. And well, that's all I know."

"Hum," Hawkpaw huffed. "I've been asking around and that's all I can ever get out of anyone about his past."

"Why don't you just ask Brambleclaw if you want to know so badly?" Juniperpaw questioned, tilting his head. "I'm sure he would just tell you. What's there to hide?"

"Something, apparently," Hawkpaw huffed, pawing at the ground. "Because he isn't telling me anything. Same with my mom. I even asked Billystorm, and he wouldn't tell me either."

"Have you tried Ravenpaw or Barley?" Birdwing suggested. "Didn't Cherrytail say that they met before he joined the clan?"

"I've already tried that, too," Hawkpaw huffed. "Well, not Ravenpaw, but he's been in the medicine den ever since they got here. Barley gave me the same answers my parents did, and Rileypaw and Bellapaw are too young to know anything."

"Oh, well," Juniperpaw shrugged, and they passed into a companionable silence for a couple minutes, hurriedly digging into their food. As they ate, Hawkpaw noticed Rileypaw and Bellapaw come into camp, most likely from their first battle training session, and head to the fresh-kill pile to grab some food themselves. The two had been apprenticed to Sandyclaw and Sagenose respectively, and though there was still some trouble explaining the warrior code to them, otherwise, they'd fit in well with the clan.

"Hawkpaw?"

The brown tabby apprentice looked up after ten minutes or so to see Tawnypaw padding up to him and his friends, looking apprehensive. The tortoiseshell she-cat flicked her ears nervously as he brother, Birdwing, Hollypaw, and Juniperpaw's eyes fell on her.

"What is it, Tawnypaw?" Hawkpaw spoke up slowly, partially on guard. Ever since he'd tried to convince her of her powers and the dream he had about Jayfeather, she had avoided him. Soon, even as their fight faded in importance, they'd just fallen in a routine to not interact. They'd barely spoken in the last couple moons.

"Look, I… need to talk to you," she muttered, shuffling her paws. "In private."

Juniperpaw snorted in surprise, but quickly covered it up by grabbing a bite out of Hollypaw's mouse (he'd finished his own squirrel already). The black apprentice batted a sheathed paw at his old friend.

"Sure, I guess," Hawkpaw answered, standing up. "Mind getting rid of our pigeon for me, Birdwing?"

"Sure," the black warrior shrugged.

"Thanks," he responded. Tawnypaw motioned for him to follow her, and she moved up the gorge and towards some of the unused caves, which were used for prey and herb storage in the winter. But ever since greenleaf had recently arrived in full force, they had been left deserted.

"Look… Hawkpaw… I need to apologize to you," Tawnypaw murmured once they were out of earshot from any possible peeping ears.

"What?" The brown tabby echoed after a moment, caught off-guard. "Tawnypaw, what are you talking about? I know we haven't been on the best terms lately, but we haven't been on _bad_ terms, for sure."

"I believe you, alright?!" The tortoiseshell burst, digging her claws into the ground. She flattened her ears, and let out a long breath, feeling embarrassed. "You have powers. I believe you now."

_Powers…? _Honestly, he had nearly forgotten about the Starclan cats he had seen in his dreams so long ago, and even the ability to sense his clanmates' feelings had been pushed to the backburner. He had found himself rarely paying attention to it in the hustle and bustle of clan life. However, the memories came rushing back to him, slightly fuzzy but clear enough to remember the jist of what had happened, into his mind.

"You do?!" He exclaimed, finding himself reaching out to his sister tenderly. Sure enough, there was embarrassment on the surface, but underneath that a stream of sincerity, worry, and excitement. He bounded forwards and nuzzled himself into his sister's flank. "Will you stop ignoring me now?"

"I just apologized for that, didn't I?" Tawnypaw countered, drawing back slightly, though a smile touched her lips. "Look, I believe you. That's what matters now."

"Wait a minute…" Hawkpaw blinked, a question popping into his head. "What made you believe in what I told you? And why now? In all honesty, I had nearly forgotten about my powers, Jayfeather, and Honeyleaf on my own."

"That's... a story," Tawnypaw muttered, flicking her tail back and forth. She glanced down at the camp, where the cats inside looked tiny and unassuming from their perch. "I haven't told anyone about this yet, alright? Not even Echosong."

"Really? What is it?" Hawkpaw inquired, curiosity piked. He leaned forwards on instinct.

"For a while now, I've been having… dreams. Not normal ones, but there weren't any Starclan cats there, either. It's all really confusing, but some of the recent ones I have figured out. They made me remember what you had told me back when we were first apprenticed, and that you were right."

"Can you tell me what they were?"

"It's complicated. I'm not sure how to explain them."

Hawkpaw frowned, wanting horribly to know what Tawnypaw was telling him. He thought back to his dream, watching Honeyleaf speak to Echosong and Tawnypaw. She had said that he'd followed his sister into her dream, right? Something along those lines? And then there was what he had seen when he had met Jayfeather…

He had an idea.

"Tawnypaw, I'm going to try something, alright?" He asked. His sister blinked, then nodded slowly. "But I'm going to have to focus. Be quiet for a couple minutes."

Tawnypaw looked as if she wanted to ask what he was thinking, then frowned and let it drop, nodding again. Hawkpaw took that as a yes, and closed his eyes, reaching out to her mentally. First came the emotions he had identified earlier, but he threw aside the warning Jayfeather had given him so long ago, and pushed even further inside. First, there was nothing, but as Tawnypaw showed no signs of pain or discomfort, he kept on going, before—

_She stood in a field of grass, spanning as far as she could see. However, it was cropped short, as if the tops had been razed off; the blades barely rose above her paws. The sky above her was stormy and gray. Suddenly, a huge gust of wind arose, nearly sweeping her off of her feet. She crouched down to try and stay balanced. _

_Then there was a shape in the grass, some ways away. Several drops of rain began to fall, one plopping right on her nose, and she felt a tugging in her gut to make her follow the tom. She took one shaky step, then another, trying to keep her footing in the stormy wind. The rain fell even harder before she was within a couple fox-lengths of the shape, which turned into a brown tabby tom._

_Hawkpaw saw a clone of himself turn around and stare at her accusingly. Tawnypaw gasped, wondering what she had done to make him look so angry._

"_Why don't you believe me?" His clone asked, voice coming from nowhere and everywhere at once. She started, confused. _

"_What? What are you talking about?"_

"_Believe me! Believe me!"_

"_Hawkpaw, do you have bees in your brain? What are you talking about?"_

_The rainfall abruptly transformed into a huge downpour, greater than anything she had ever seen in her short lifespan. It pelted into the earth, making it even harder to keep her balance. She quickly dug her claws into the ground, trying to stay in place._

"_You must believe me! I must find the other two, and only you are the key to finding them!"_

"_Hawkpaw!"_

_Before he could respond, there was a loud hissing, rising above even the roar of the storm. She nearly screeched in fear when she caught sight of a huge snake slithering towards them, fangs bared. Hawkpaw's fur fluffed out against the wind, making him look intimidating and twice as large._

"_Tawnypaw! Hurry!"_

_Then the snake pounced._

Hawkpaw suddenly found himself back in his own paws once again, right before the snake struck him. He gasped, stumbling backwards before stopping a couple mouse-lengths from the edge of the path they were on. He took a couple deep breaths, and quickly groomed himself slightly, trying to make sure he wasn't hurt or soaking wet.

"Hawkpaw? What was that?" Tawnypaw asked, looking partially alarmed.

"I'm not… sure," he sighed, shaking himself out to try and calm down. "This is only the second time I've tried pushing myself with my powers. I think I saw your dream. Something about me asking you to believe me, and a snake attacking?"

"Y-yes…" Tawnypaw stammered. "How long have you been able to do that? That's so cool!"

Hawkpaw blinked, before shrugging. "I don't know," he replied. "Forever, I guess? I've never really tried."

"You're so dumb, Hawkpaw," Tawnypaw rolled her eyes. "Completely hopeless. We'll need to try and figure out how your powers work. I mean, I got a dream about it, and you've been visited by this Jayfeather fellow, so it has to mean something. And we're going to get to the bottom of it."

"If you want to," Hawkpaw shrugged. He wanted to believe his sister, he really did, but she'd been so cold in the last couple moons. It was disconcerting how quickly she had switched viewpoints. Then again, if he'd had a prophetic dream like that, he'd want to do what it told him to as well. "Why can't we just tell Leafstar, though? She'd be able to help."

"Do you think she'd really believe us?" Tawnypaw questioned. "Her apprentice just coming up to her and saying 'Hey, Leafstar, I've talked to dead cats, can see memories, and know what you're feeling at any given time?' I didn't."

"I guess you have a point…"

"Besides, wouldn't this be fun to try and figure out on our own? I mean, saving the clan all by ourselves? Because I'll bet you all my prey for a moon that these rogues have something to do with my dreams and your powers."

"Yeah. That does sound cool. We'd be hailed as heroes if we managed to do this on our own!" Hawkpaw smiled, before starting. "Oh, yeah! I almost forgot. Jayfeather told me something oddly specific when I saw him. And I can't seem to shake it out of my head. _Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path._ What do you think that means?"

Tawnypaw blinked, then nodded to herself. "I have a small idea. Let me think on it, and I'll tell you later, alright?"

"Alright. Talk later? I have hunting practice with Featherpaw this afternoon."

"Sure. It's a deal."

* * *

"What… is this place?"

Hawkpaw was lost. He was dreaming, that he knew, but unlike the previous times he had dreamed, he didn't feel very… safe. The trees around him loomed up like pillars, casting deep shadows over the ground, making it difficult to see. There was a low mist over the ground as well, just high enough to cover his paws. His moons of training to be a warrior took over after a couple moments of shock, and he instinctively crouched down to the ground. He found himself extremely thankful for his pelt pattern, then, with his tabby fur blending in with the trees and his white paws in the mist.

He looked up, trying to discern where he was. The sky was pitch black, though, with no stars in sight. It did nothing to reassure him.

_Well, I'm here… Might as well try to find someone._

But he didn't call out like he usually would. Instead, he found himself creeping along, ears perked and claws unsheathed, every muscle ready to burst into action at a moment's notice. He felt unsafe, and every instinct in his body was screaming at him to leave.

But he didn't know how. So he kept on moving.

"But Firestar's not afraid of anything!"

A voice floated across the forest, and Hawkpaw froze. He looked to his left, where the sound was coming from. Firestar? What did these cats know about Firestar? Curiosity overpowering his concern for safety, he crept forwards, making sure to keep out of sight but getting closer nonetheless. There was some undergrowth coming up, and he privately thanked Starclan for it and settled inside, peering through the cracks to see who was there.

And saw two toms who looked exactly like him.

Seriously, these two toms looked so similar to him and Brambleclaw that he found himself caught off-guard. One had a slightly darker pelt than his, with a white belly, while the other looked so much like his father that the only thing that differentiated them was a long, jagged scar across his muzzle. In between them and facing him was a sliver-and-gray tabby she-cat, looking to be about his own age.

The tom with the scar was speaking, and he drew Hawkpaw back in to listen.

"But still he decided that it was easier to give up territory than risk the lives of his clanmates defending it. And sadly Shadowclan saw that as weakness, not wisdom."

_Shadowclan?_ Hawkpaw had never heard of such a clan before, only Skyclan and Thunderclan. Another name drifted into his mind, and he recalled Riverclan. Sandyclaw had mentioned once while boasting that he was descended from them through Clovertail, though Hawkpaw had never bothered to ask what he had meant by that, instead dismissing it. But nothing about Shadowclan. Were they bad?

"Why are you telling me this?" The silver-and-white tabby asked. "Weren't you once Shadowclan's leader? Why would you give away their plans?"

The scarred tom stiffened, and tenderly, Hawkpaw found himself skimming his mind.

Instantly, he threw himself back into the recesses of his own domain.

The scarred tom was so full of hate and malice it was a miracle Hawkpaw hadn't sensed it earlier. Even now, locking himself in his own mind, he could sense it. Terror shot through him, but he forced it down as to not give himself away. This tom… this tom was pure evil.

Part of him wondered what the other two were like, but he didn't dare to reach out again at the risk of finding something similar to what he had felt from the scarred tom. What floated over to him, however, was a similar malice from the tom with the white belly, and alarm and righteous anger from the she-cat.

The scarred tom was speaking again. Hawkpaw forced himself to listen.

"My loyalty lies with Thunderclan," he spoke. "I'd rather be a humble warrior than live outside of the clans, without the warrior code to guide my paws." _Fox dung!_ Even he, who had never spoken to or seen this tom before, could see that what he was saying was a load of lies. Whoever this tom was, Thunderclan was lucky to be rid of him. "Thunderclan must be warned of the danger they face."

"You really think they'll invade?" The she-cat asked.

The tom with the white belly padded closer. "They've already had a taste of Thunderclan territory."

"How much do they want?"

The scarred tom tilted his head. "Only the land up to abandoned Twoleg nest."

"But that's where Leafpool grows her herbs!"

"Do you think they don't know that?" The scarred tom murmured.

The tabby she-cat ducked her head, chastised. "What can I do?"

"Are you sure you're ready?"

The sheer amount of greed, anger, and cruel excitement was just too much. Hawkpaw silently took one step back, then another, leaving as quietly as he could with his heart throbbing so hard he felt as if it was about to fall out of his chest. Once he was certain that he was out of earshot, he burst into a sprint, trying to get as far away from the three cats as possible. He ran and ran, not even bothering to try and hide himself anymore in his terror.

Finally, after what felt like seasons, he slowed, gulping for air. _What was that?_ If he wasn't lost before, he sure was now, though everything seemed to look the same around here.

There was a flash in front of him, and he froze in terror as a shadow in the shape of a cat passed in front of him, barely more corporeal than the mist at his feet. A flash of disdain—the only emotion he could feel from it—crossed the shape's mind, before it moved on without a word. Hawkpaw turned his head to watch it leave.

_What is this place? Who was that?_

"What are you doing here?!"

Hawkpaw let out a startled yowl, whipping around to find himself face-to-face with a large tom, only slightly smaller than Brambleclaw. Hawkpaw stumbled backwards a fox-length or two before pausing to take the tom in.

He was almost purely white, with jet-black paws and glittering yellow eyes. His fur was matted with scars, contributing to his intimidating look. Hawkpaw found himself backing away even more, flattening his ears and unsheathing his claws once again.

"Please—Please don't hurt me," He murmured. "I didn't mean to come here, honestly! I'll go home as soon as I can find out how."

"Wait a minute…" The tom muttered. "You aren't—" he sighed and shook himself out. "Who are you, kit?"

Hawkpaw didn't answer for a moment, still on guard. Timidly, he reached out to the white tom, terrified he would feel the same malice he had felt with the scarred tom from earlier, but to his everlasting relief, caught only worry, curiosity, and confusion.

"I'm Hawkpaw," he replied, feeling slightly safer. He raised his head and drew himself up slowly. "And I'm an apprentice. Who are you?"

"That is of no concern for now," the tom replied, looking over his shoulder warily. A flash of paranoia rushed up in his mind, and Hawkpaw knew, then, that he wasn't supposed to be here, either. Or at least he wasn't comfortable in this place. He felt even better at that, knowing he wasn't alone. "How did you end up here?"

He'd been trying to dream his way into Starclan on his own, but he couldn't tell this tom that.

"I don't know…" he frowned. That was partially the truth. "I went to bed and woke up here. Where are we?"

"Do you know of Starclan, kit?" The white tom asked, padding towards the trunk of a particularly tall tree. Hawkpaw followed him, and they both sat down. "Tell me."

"Of course I do!" The brown tabby responded. "It's the afterlife, where all warriors go after they die. You know, endless prey and easy living and stuff."

"Not all cats go to Starclan."

Hawkpaw paused. A deep regret was flowing off the tom now, though none of it showed on his physical features. What did he mean when he said not all cats go to Starclan? His mind flashed back to seeing the brown tabbies and the silver-and-white she-cat.

"I saw some cats earlier. Two toms who looked like me and a she-cat. Are they dead?"

The tom's eyes widened, and he considered the young tom skeptically. "You came into contact with Hawkfrost and Tigerstar? And survived?"

"That's who they are? Why are they here? And I didn't talk to them. I don't think they saw me. They were talking to the she-cat."

"Then you're extremely lucky to be alive. This place—" He pointed with his muzzle to the sky. "Is called the Dark Forest. This is where all the cats who have committed unforgivable sins reside."

"Then why am I here?!"

The tom shrugged. "Who knows. Sometimes cats just wander in while dreaming, though that doesn't happen very often."

"How do I get out?"

"Go to sleep. You'll wake up in your actual body eventually."

"Eventually?"

There was a twinge of amusement from the tom. "Go to sleep," he pressed. "I'll watch over you until you wake up."

* * *

**Time skip! We are not seeing the rescue mission for Birdpaw/wing and Macgyver. When writing this part of the story, I felt it was a good idea, since only the leadership of the clan was involved and our POVs were not involved in it, but after starting to publish this, I've started to waver on that. So please, tell me what you think. If the time skip is disconcerting or there's a break in the cohesion because of it, I can write a chapter saying what happened. But it would not involve Hawkpaw/Featherpaw all that much and be pretty short, and on top of that I'd have to chance the plot a bit. I don't know. **

**Who is the mysterious tom in the Dark Forest? Find out in _Divided Future!_**

**Next: The trek to the climax begins!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Not much to say this week. I hope y'all like this chapter, and as always, review, follow, and favorite!**

**Reviews:**

**Olivewhisker**—You'll just have to wait and see ;).

* * *

Featherpaw kneaded her paws into the ground, waiting impatiently as Brokenstar watched her silently. The forest above her was dark and foreboding, but she'd long grown used to it in the past moon she'd been here. Battle training here had truly paid off, for although she didn't feel like she got much sleep, her training had been improving in leaps and bounds in the meantime. Hawkfrost was a wonderful teacher, and by far her favorite cat here. Sometimes it was Brokenstar who watched her, though, when her nighttime mentor wasn't available. She didn't like him; he was much too… well… she couldn't name what it was about the dark tabby that threw her off, but it was there nonetheless.

Today was one of those days, with Hawkfrost being busy once again. Brokenstar had trained her in his absence, like usual, but instead of waking up like she usually did once they finished, he had insisted that she not sleep just yet and wait for her mentor to arrive to tell her something.

Featherpaw unsheathed her claws and dug them into the ice-cold dirt. She was more than ready to catch a couple hours of sleep, and she would probably do so if Hawkfrost didn't arrive soon. Though her battle training had improved so that she was now beating Hawkpaw in training, Rockshade had begun to notice her incessant tiredness even when getting a full night's rest when not on the nighttime patrols.

On the subject of her mentor, she still didn't find herself picking up the strong bond they had lost when Bouncefire had died. It had taken almost half a moon for Rockshade to bounce back, and Featherpaw had discovered by then that though his training was fun, Hawkfrost's harsh workouts that demanded only the best from a cat worked better and yielded the most results. She was already ahead of Hawkpaw, and was quickly reaching Hollypaw's level, and he was two full moons ahead of her!

A rush of pride flushed through her fur. Hawkfrost always told her that she'd be a warrior her clan would be proud of, one to bring Skyclan to unprecedented heights of power. Under her, no more would they have to bow to the whims of rogues and kittypets! And it was all thanks to Brokenstar and Hawkfrost.

Speaking of the ragged tabby, Brokenstar stood up, raising his nose for her to follow his lead. Silently, Featherpaw did as she was told, and barely a moment later, three cats entered the clearing. Leading them was Hawkfrost, and he sent her a welcoming smile as he entered, which Featherpaw returned just slightly less enthusiastically. Behind him was a tom that looked a lot like Brambleclaw, with a scar across his nose, and between them was a silver-and-white tabby she-cat.

Featherpaw blinked in confusion.

"Hawkfrost," she dipped her head while Brokenstar angled his muzzle towards the two toms in greeting. "What did you need me for? I've already practiced my moves today."

"I'm just here to introduce you to some important cats," Hawkfrost rumbled. "This is my father, Tigerstar. He was once a great leader in Shadowclan, and lead them to gain much power and fame before the time of Firestar."

Featherpaw dipped her head, slightly in awe at once again meeting a great Starclan leader. Tigerstar simply snorted in amusement and moved to start talking to Brokenstar in low murmurs.

"And this is Ivypaw," Hawkfrost flicked his tail to the silver-and-white tabby. "My other apprentice. Ivypaw, this is Featherpaw. She has also been training under me."

The two she-cat blinked in unison, suddenly seeing each other in a whole new light. Featherpaw herself felt slightly betrayed. She had thought that only she had the talent necessary to succeed in Hawkfrost's training! Who was this Ivypaw, who thought that she could keep up with her?

Then another thought crossed her mind.

Who _was_ Ivypaw? She wasn't in Skyclan, that was for sure.

"Which clan are you from?" Ivypaw asked, seeming to have the same brainwave. "I'm from Thunderclan, but I've never seen you at any Gatherings? Are you a new apprentice?"

"...No," Featherpaw replied slowly, digging her claws into the ground in surprise, her previous jealousy melting away. She was meeting a living cat from Thunderclan! _I wonder what the four clans think of Skyclan. Did Firestar tell them how talented we are to have survived on our own?_ "I'm from Skyclan. We wouldn't have met before. It's a pleasure to meet you!"

"Skyclan?" Ivypaw blinked, shaking her head. "Hawkfrost, I've never heard of such a clan before. Where do they live? I always thought there were four clans: Thunderclan, Shadowclan, Riverclan, and Windclan!"

The ground lurched under Featherpaw's feet. _What?_

They didn't… know? Why hadn't Firestar told them? She had always thought that he would've been told by the clans of the horrendous sin they had committed so long ago, and that they had sent him and Sandstorm to the gorge to remedy it. Why didn't the clans know about Skyclan?

"Yes, there are currently four clans," Hawkfrost was saying, drawing Featherpaw back to reality. "But long ago, there were five. Skyclan was the fifth clan in the forest, but their territory was destroyed by Twolegs. When they approached the other clans for help, they all turned their backs. Skyclan was forced to leave the forest and travel a very long ways away to try and find a new home. Sadly, they were too weak to properly establish themselves, and disbanded several generations later. All because the original four clans were too proud to help."

"What? That's horrible!" Ivypaw exclaimed. Featherpaw found herself nodding, anger rising in her. She knew this story all too well: it was a cautionary tale Brackenfall and Patchfoot had taught her as a kit. "Why would my ancestors make them leave? Starclan wouldn't have allowed it!"

"But Starclan did," Hawkfrost sighed. "No matter how some of us protested, it happened."

"But… you're here," Ivypaw turned back to Featherpaw. "Did Skyclan really disband?"

Featherpaw looked to Hawkfrost, and he nodded. "You're more rehearsed in the story than I," he mewed.

"Well, we were, for a long time," the brown-and-white she-cat answered. "But then Firestar and his mate, Sandstorm, heard our story, and came and rebuilt our clan. He helped us defeat our enemies, who refused to let us come back, and made sure we were strong enough to succeed on our own before going back to Thunderclan. He's kinda more of a legend now." She flicked an ear. "Honestly, we had always thought that he'd told the clans about us."

"No," Ivypaw shook her head. "I've never even heard of Firestar and Sandstorm leaving the clan before, much less the existence of a fifth clan."

Featherpaw scowled. "The clans deserve to know what they did to us."

"We're not here to talk about what's already said and done, sadly," Hawkfrost cut into their conversation. "I wanted you to meet each other, as two apprentices of the same mentor. I chose the both of you because you two have the most potential of your two clans. From now on, we'll be training together."

"Sounds cool," Ivypaw smiled at her, and Featherpaw shot her a similar look back.

_Maybe having a partner won't be so bad, after all…_

* * *

"Featherpaw! Come on! It's time to wake up!"

Featherpaw groaned, batting away at the paw prodding at her side and covering the bright lights around her with a paw. She grumbled, feeling exhausted and wanting to grab a couple more minutes of sleep after her long night with Hawkfrost and Ivypaw. They'd be meeting again in a day or two, which she found herself looking forwards to more than usual. Ivypaw was pretty cool, and she had found herself clicking with the Thunderclan apprentice rather quickly.

"Featherpaw!"

There was a harsher jab at her side, and finally the brown-and-white she-cat lashed out at the intruder of her sleep. There was a small yelp, and then.

"She cut me! I know she doesn't like mornings, but she _cut_ me!"

Featherpaw just flattened her ears, trying to block out the sounds around her again. There was a moment's pause, then strong teeth grabbed the scuff of her neck and practically threw her out of her nest. Featherpaw shrieked as she landed on something soft, and there was a yelp underneath her. She finally blinked open her eyes and hissed.

"What was that for?!" She exclaimed.

"Why are you asking me that?!" Came the voice under her, which she recognized as Rileypaw. She stood up and got off of the pale gray tabby tom and turned to see who had thrown her.

Brambleclaw looked down at his daughter with a mixture of annoyance and amusement, while Juniperpaw nursed a small cut on his paw. Hawkpaw and Firepaw were already gone from their nests, she noted, probably having already woken up.

"Come on," Her father jerked his head to the apprentice's den entrance. "You're helping us out today. Stay awake while you're at it, too."

"Humph," Featherpaw grumped, stomping past mentor and apprentice, ears burning with embarrassment. She sensed the two toms sigh almost in unison, but she ignored them, instead slipping down to the fresh-kill pile with a huff. Tearing off a mouse, she sat down silently and began to eat. Honestly, what kind of father threw their daughter out of her nest?

"A little grumpy today, I see," Juniperpaw laughed, following her. Featherpaw shot him a dark look, and he chuckled.

"You seem a little more annoying than usual," she shot back. The cream tom simply laughed.

"I guess so," he chuckled, before beaming. "Featherpaw, my warrior assessment is today! You're helping out, too!"

"Color me stoked." Featherpaw rolled her eyes. "Give me a couple minutes to wake up."

Juniperpaw just laughed gratingly again. Featherpaw scowled, but he just laughed harder. Desperate to not be stuck with the eldest apprentice for too much longer, she glanced around while taking large bites out of her mouth. Nearby, she glimpsed Hawkpaw and Tawnypaw talking together, a rabbit in the former's mouth. She glanced around quickly, trying to find someone else to distract her, but no one else was up yet in the early morning light, save for Leafstar, Sharpclaw, and Rockshade.

"Hawkpaw! Tawnypaw!" She called, waiting until her littermates' heads turned towards her to continue. "Get over here!"

Hawkpaw huffed and stomped over, Tawnypaw following much more quietly behind, and sent her sister a smile.

"What's up, Featherpaw?" he asked, seeming more chipper than usual today. Featherpaw sent him a look, but he ignored her and turned to Juniperpaw. "Oh, it's your warrior ceremony today, isn't it? Hollypaw and I are going to be helping you out, too!"

"Yep!" Juniperpaw grinned. "It's in a couple minutes."

"You don't have to be so nervous about it, you know," Hawkpaw shrugged, sitting down. "You'll do just fine."

Juniperpaw blinked, surprised, when Featherpaw looked at him in shock. Juniperpaw was nervous about his assessment? How did he know, even with that strange sixth sense of his? For all she knew, Juniperpaw was only being more annoying than usual.

"_Any_ways," Tawnypaw spoke in the awkward silence that had sprung up after her brother's comment. "Why are all of you guys going out with Juniperpaw, anyways? You're only halfway through training."

Featherpaw shrugged and turned to Juniperpaw for an answer.

"Strength in numbers, you know?" he responded, having sombered slightly after Hawkpaw's comment. "Sharpclaw and Leafstar don't want to risk the rogues taking advantage of the assessment and attacking me or my mentor. They were talking about assessing you guys, too. Just to see where you are."

"Is Firepaw coming?" Tawnypaw asked. Juniperpaw shrugged.

"Dunno."

"He's so far behind us already," Featherpaw spoke up. "I think Nettlesplash should wait for a bit on him. I don't think he's ready for an assessment."

"He's been trying just as hard as both of you," Tawnypaw protested. "He may not as good of a fighter of hunter and you two are, but he tries."

Featherpaw sent her sister a doubting look. What was the point of being a warrior if you couldn't fight or hunt? Hawkfrost always said that strength was everything in the clans, and she wasn't about to start doubting him.

"Well, _I_ think he's twice the apprentice you are," the tortoiseshell huffed, baring her fangs, seeming to sense what her sister was thinking. "At least he focuses on his chores and doesn't try to sneak out of camp at night!"

Hawkpaw and Juniperpaw's eyes widened in shock, but Featherpaw paid no mind to them, instead glaring at her pain in the tail sister. Tawnypaw dared to say that she wasn't the best apprentice in the clan?! She was going through twice the training anyone else was! And she hadn't tried to sneak out of camp in forever, not since she started training with Hawkfrost.

"At least I actually interact with Firepaw," she hissed, mouse forgotten. She stood up and pressed forwards so that she was nose-to-nose with Tawnypaw. "You're always off being so high and mighty. _I'm the great Tawnypaw!_" She raised the pitch of her voice so that it was mocking her sister. "_And I don't need anyone's help!_ Who do you think you are?"

"Someone who cares about others!" Tawnypaw screeched, the whites of her eyes showing. "So maybe I was a fox-heart to Hawkpaw! But I'm trying to make up for it! You only care about yourself!"

"I do not!" Featherpaw shouted, her ears flattening. She was trying to be the best warrior so she could protect them! She was training with Hawkfrost so that what happened with Bouncefire, and later with Birdwing and Macgyver, would never happen again!

"Really?" The tortoiseshell medicine cat roared. "Because while you've been practicing your silly battle moves you keep on making up, _Firepaw_, Hawkpaw, and I have been the ones to comfort Rileypaw and Bellapaw! You know, the two new apprentices who's first mentor is _dying_?! Remember Ravenpaw?! You haven't visited him once while the rest of us are trying to help him get better!"

Something snapped, and Featherpaw launched herself at her sister, claws unsheathed. This wasn't some silly play-fight with Hawkpaw. Featherpaw was having a horrible day already, and this just topped it off. Tawnypaw had insulted Hawkfrost's training and her own pride, and by Starclan's name was she going to defend it!

It was easy to get a hold on Tawnypaw. Since she was a medicine cat and didn't need to learn how to fight, she was so weak it was almost laughable how easily she gave in. A red mist had covered her gaze, and the cries of Juniperpaw and Hawkpaw were just white noise in the background. Tawnypaw attempted to fight back, but her sheathed paws batting at her sister did little to stop Featherpaw's rage-filled assault.

Then, after several heartbeats, there was a second body. Featherpaw turned to see Hawkpaw's amber eyes glaring at her as he thrust himself in between his sisters, and she swung a claw at him. Then there was a third cat, as Juniperpaw jumped into the fray, trying to heave her off of Tawnypaw by the scruff of her neck. Featherpaw yowled and struck out with her back paws, but Juniperpaw only winced and tightened his grip, pulling on her even harder. Then, Hawkpaw gave a massive shove from the front, and she lost her balance just enough to be pulled away by Juniperpaw.

"—ahold of yourself!" The buzz in her ears faded slightly, enough to make out the words being shouted into her ears. It took her several moments longer to realize that the one screaming was Hawkpaw.

"Featherpaw! What's gotten into you?!" Hawkpaw screeched, ears flat as Juniperpaw dragged her away even further. Her brother stood protectively over Tawnypaw, who was crouched on the ground, blood dripping onto the dirt. "I get Tawnypaw made you mad, but why in Starclan's name—" his voice cracked and he cut himself off, looking horrified and betrayed.

"What's going on here?!"

More cats were getting out of their dens, but it was Sharpclaw who had spoken. The deputy was always one of the first ones awake, and he, Brambleclaw, Rockshade, and Rabbitleap were rushing over to them. With their arrival, the red haze faded, and Featherpaw's quick breaths slowed as she took in the damage she had caused with a rising horror.

Tawnypaw was covered in scratch marks, and her pelt was beginning to drip red. Hawkpaw stood over her, gazing at her with a mixture of fear, betrayal, and a sort of _try and hurt my sister, I dare you_ aura coming off of him. Brambleclaw rushed over to his daughter with a cry, hurriedly beginning to lick at her wounds while Rabbitleap raced off—to where, she didn't dwell on—and Sharpclaw stared at her in disbelief, silently asking why she had attacked her own clanmate and sister. Rockshade… oh, Rockshade. Her mentor, even with their deteriorated relationship, seemed so disappointed, the last reserves of anger flushed out of her body.

"Featherpaw?" Brambleclaw looked to her, eyes flashing. "What did you do?"

"Featherpaw, we need to talk," Sharpclaw hissed, more angry than she had ever seen him.

"Featherpaw…" Hawkpaw trailed off, seeming to sense the tumult of emotions rising inside of her.

_Featherpaw. Featherpaw. Featherpaw._

She had hurt her sister. The realization was slowly coming into being in her mind. Her own sister. Sure, they hadn't interacted that much recently, but with Ravenpaw sick she and Echosong had been so busy. And she'd recently even turned around and tried to talk to them more.

_Oh_. She hadn't been thinking about Ravenpaw at all. The loner whose health had steadily faded in the past several moons. Now that she thought about it, Barley, Bellapaw, and Rileypaw had all taken time for visiting him, as had Firepaw and Hawkpaw, but she hadn't even spared a moment to think about him. Because… because she had to get stronger.

Yes. To get stronger. The thought solidified her in reality slightly. One day she would be stronger than them all and then Tawnypaw could understand why she did what she did. But… Tawnypaw was only a medicine cat, not a warrior who needed to protect the clan. She couldn't understand, not yet. And Featherpaw had lashed out at her because of that. Because her sister was ignorant and didn't understand.

She couldn't take their stares any longer. They didn't understand. They _couldn't _understand. None of them understood her like Hawkfrost. She wished he was here, or maybe even Ivypaw. Yeah, Ivypaw would understand where she was coming from. But they weren't, and wouldn't be until next meeting.

Unable to stay any more, Featherpaw yanked herself out of Juniperpaw's grip, eliciting a cry from the eldest apprentice. Before she could give anyone a chance to react, she burst into a sprint, determined to get away from the scene. Leaping up onto a rock, she didn't dare look back as she scrambled up the size of the gorge. Brushing past Ebonyclaw and Billystorm as they lead the Daylight warriors into camp, she was on top of the gorge in a matter of minutes.

Her legs were burning but she didn't _couldn't_ stop. Gasping for breath but not faltering, she continued along the gorge, determined to get as far away from Skyclan as possible.

She needed to think.


	14. Chapter 13

**We have reached the three climax chapters! Thank you so much for getting this far and leaving so much support :-). **

**I may be pushing it, but could we get to 25 reviews by the end of this? Your comments improve this story and help me write faster and better. **

* * *

**Chapter 13:**

"Featherpaw!" Rockshade cried, taking a couple steps forwards as the brown and white apprentice bolted out of camp and over the gorge. He sent a worried look to the other three warriors, calling out a short "I'll get her!" before bounding away after his apprentice without waiting for a response.

It took Hawkpaw a couple moments to realise that he was still standing protectively over Tawnypaw. He moved slowly, feeling as if he was moving through water, away from her, allowing Brambleclaw to tend to his daughter while Tawnypaw let out a soft "ouch" every time she was licked over a particularly deep scratch. Her wounds seemed to look a lot worse than they were—already, he could see that Tawnypaw only had one deep set of clawmarks, on her cheek.

"What just happened here?" Hawkpaw turned to see Sharpclaw striding up to him with a stern expression. However, instead of the usual anger and discomfort he felt off of Skyclan's deputy, there was instead a sense of worry and surprise that sharply contrasted his outward expression.

"Tawnypaw and Featherpaw got into a fight," Juniperpaw explained slowly, still standing from where he had pulled Featherpaw off of her sister. "I think they both had some problems with each other, and they never really talked it out. So they both said really bad things to each other, and when Tawnypaw accused Featherpaw of not caring about the clan, she snapped."

"I see…" Sharpclaw sighed, letting air hiss sharply through his fangs. A pang of understanding flashed through him.

"You two are both in so much trouble!" Brambleclaw announced angrily, ears flattening as he gave Tawnypaw a firm glare. "Your mother and I are both going to have a very long talk with you about talking and acting civil to others."

"Will my assessment still be taking place today?" Juniperpaw asked, looking uncomfortable with the situation. "I mean, Featherpaw's gone, and she was supposed to be helping."

Sharpclaw's eyes flickered over to Brambleclaw, but he didn't give the brown a tabby a chance to decide for his own apprentice, instead looking up to the sky, which was beginning to cloud.

"I suggest you go ahead with it," he answered. "A rainstorm is coming in; it'll probably hit by this evening. This may be your last chance for a couple days—unless you wish to climb slippery branches, of course."

"Yes!" Juniperpaw ears perked up, worry and excitement clashing like a tidal wave inside of him. Hawkpaw simply shook his head; the cream tom's emotions had been a mess like that all morning. Brambleclaw was dominated with worry and annoyance, while Tawnypaw was simply enveloped in a crushing guilt, tinged with some residual anger from the fight.

"Hawkpaw! Tawnypaw!" The group of cats turned around to see Cherrytail rushing towards them, Echosong and Leafstar trailing behind more slowly. "Are you alright?!"

"Oh, no," Tawnypaw groaned, and Hawkpaw couldn't help but agree with her. His mother could have a fiery temper sometimes. "I'm fine, Mom!" She called, raising her voice so the tortoiseshell warrior could hear her.

"What happened?" Leafstar asked once they came closer. "Rabbitleap came to us in a panic, saying something about Featherpaw and Tawnypaw fighting."

"And I can see that he wasn't half wrong," Echosong added with a sigh, padding up to her apprentice. "Tawnypaw, I'm going to have to keep you in the den today so you can heal. What were you thinking, getting into a fight? I haven't taught you how to perform any battle moves yet, and I needed someone to get more burnet and chamomile today. Now who's going to do that while I watch Ravenpaw?"

"Sorry…" came the quiet response.

Leafstar turned to Sharpclaw. "Where's Featherpaw?"

"She ran off somewhere after I arrived," the dark ginger tom shrugged. "Rockshade went after her."

"I'll send Sparrowpelt after them," she responded. "We can't risk them being attacked."

"I'll go as well!" Cherrytail volunteered. Leafstar nodded, then turned to Juniperpaw and Brambleclaw.

"Are you still going to go through with your assessment today?" she asked.

"Yes," Sharpclaw responded, and the dappled brown leader sent him an unreadable look, her emotions too covered in a layer of prestige to decipher without Hawkpaw having to focus on her. Before he could do so, she had turned to him.

"Then I suggest you get Hollypaw and get ready to go," she told him. "He arrived early today with Billystorm. You, he, and Juniperpaw will all be assessed in hunting together, according to your levels. Brambleclaw, Patchfoot, Sharpclaw, and I will all be watching you as you do so."

"Is there any quota we have to reach?" Juniperpaw asked.

"No," Leafstar shook her head. "It is perfectly possible that there may be very little prey out today, just as there may be more than usual. We will judge you according to how you catch your prey."

"Will Firepaw be coming with us?" Hawkpaw asked, his brother still fresh in his mind after the fight his sisters had over the sandy-and-white tom. Leafstar shook her head.

"No; he's on the dawn patrol with Nettlesplash today," she explained. "You three will be on your own."

"When do we start?"

Leafstar's eyes twinkled. "As soon as you find Hollypaw and get going. Don't worry about Tawnypaw or Featherpaw, they'll be alright. Now… go!"

Almost immediately, Juniperpaw sprinted off towards the fresh-kill pile, leaving Hawkpaw to scramble to try and keep up with the eldest apprentice. The rest of the clan seemed to have been aroused during the fight, and they scrambled to a halt by the fresh-kill pile, scanning the cats milling around the gorge for Hollypaw's black and gray pelt. There were Tadpolekit and Shadekit, wrestling playfully under Mintfur's loving gaze. Then there were two of the clan's three elders, Brackenfall and Tangle, sharing tongues, while Bellapaw and Barley were teaching Owlkit and Ashenkit battle moves. Then…

"There!" Juniperpaw cried, catching sight of Hollypaw grooming himself near Tadpolekit and Shadekit. They rushed over to him, nearly tripping over each other in excitement to get to him. Hollypaw looked up in surprise, obviously not used to such occurrences, since he usually stayed quiet and in the background.

"Hollypaw! Come on, it's time for Juniperpaw's assessment!" Hawkpaw burst. His littermates' fight flashed in his memory again, and he felt slightly guilty for not helping more, but then he pushed it out of his mind. He was having his first assessment; his family problems could wait.

"Already?" Hollypaw questioned. "Are we going on our own?"

"Yeah, Leafstar will watch us from behind. We've got free reign of the territory." Juniperpaw nudged him with a paw. "Come on! It's time to go!"

"Alright, alright!" the daylight apprentice grumbled lightly, stretching as the other two toms watched him impatiently.

"You're going out?" Hawkpaw's ears twitched, and he turned in surprise to see Tadpolekit rushing up towards him in excitement, Shadekit right on her heels. "Can we come?!"

"You're telling them why they can't," Juniperpaw muttered to Hawkpaw. "I don't want to make some kits cry today."

"Uh, sorry…" Hawkpaw found himself responding to the two littermates awkwardly. Tadpolekit and Shadekit had both grown up rapidly in their first three moons of life, and wherever they went a trail of trouble sprung in their wake. With either Shadekit refusing to listen to authority or Tadpolekit trying to explore, Mintfur and Nettlesplash certainly had their paws full with those two.

"We'll be good!" Shadekit protested, his tail sticking up straight in the air. "Come on!"

"Firepaw's been teaching me battle moves!" Tadpolekit added, pale green eyes begging for an affirmative answer. "Please!"

"Sorry…" Hawkpaw repeated. "Leafstar's coming with us, so we can't let you out of camp."

Tadpolekit flattened her ears. "That's no fair!" she announced in frustration, pawing at the sandy ground.

"Tadpolekit! Shadekit!" Mintfur trotted up to them, pelt flaring with embarrassment, slight annoyance, and endearance. "What have I told you about bothering the apprentices? They have work to do!"

"We want to help the clan too, though!" Shadekit protested. "We're old enough to help!"

"Yeah!" Tadpolekit agreed, pouncing into the air and clawing at an imaginary enemy with kitten-soft claws. "We'll drive out the rogues! We'll make sure they never hurt anyone ever again!"

"Definitely not!" Mintfur exclaimed indignantly. She moved forwards, brushing the kits back with a gray tail. She turned back to the three apprentices. "I'm so sorry about this. You can get going now!"

"It's alright," Juniperpaw shrugged, dipping his head before turning to Hollypaw and Hawkpaw. "Come on! We can't keep our mentors waiting!"

"Bye!" Hawkpaw called as he followed Juniperpaw down the gorge and out of camp. He didn't get much besides a reassuring smile from Mintfur, however, as she began to scold her kits for their actions. Turning away from the scene, the the apprentices rushed down the gorge and towards the river.

"What are we doing first?" Hollypaw asked as they slowed to cross the fallen tree.

"Leafstar just said to hunt," Juniperpaw responded. "Nowhere specific. Want to go towards the streams? There are usually some voles there before a storm."

"The streams are awfully close to the border," Hollypaw disagreed. "We're not supposed to take ground patrols there, remember? Only tree patrols."

There was a flash of embarrassment from Juniperpaw. It was too close to the rogues, and it seemed that their patrol 'leader' had forgotten somehow.

"Of course," he responded after a moment, shaking his head as if to clear it. "It just slipped my mind, is all. Let's go towards Firestar's Tree and see what we can find there. That's deep in our territory but still pretty far away from here."

"Lead the way, soon-to-be-warrior," Hawkpaw put in. Juniperpaw sent him a half-amused, half-annoyed look, and turned to walk in the general direction of Skyclan's first ever border marker, the three of them falling silent and keeping their mouths open to scent for prey.

A quarter of an hour or so into their trek, Juniperpaw's ears flickered to the right. Waving his tail for the other two to remain quiet, he crept over to the right and vanished with a _swish_ into the brush. Hawkpaw then took a deep breath, catching a very faint whiff of starling on the wind, which was beginning to pick up, and he felt a twinge of surprise that the cream tom had picked it up so quickly. Then again, he was almost a warrior now.

Then, there was something else on the wind. Something… just slightly off. It was coming from the opposite direction Juniperpaw had gone, but was too faint to really make out.

"Do you smell that?" Hawkpaw whispered, voice barely carrying over the wind. Hollypaw's nose twitched, and he opened his mouth slightly wider before blinking.

"I… yes," he murmured back. "I can't place it, though."

"I'm going to go and find what it is," Hawkpaw announced, realizing what he wanted to do as the words slipped out of his mouth unbidden. "What if it's prey? I want to get as much as I can."

"We shouldn't leave Juniperpaw alone," Hollypaw shot back quietly. "It's against Leafstar's new patrol rules."

"Our mentors are watching us, remember? They'll split up so that neither of us are alone."

Hollypaw let out a sigh, looking at his younger friend, before finally sighing and dipping his head for Hawkpaw to lead, caving in. The brown tabby smirked inwardly. Hollypaw may be smart and quiet, but if prodded he backed down pretty quick. Creeping forwards, the two apprentices left their waiting spot, twisting around a particularly dense copse of trees, the scent becoming thicker and more… ugly as they came closer.

"What _is_ this smell?" Hollypaw muttered, wrinkling his muzzle as a flash of his fear flickered through the air. "It certainly isn't prey."

Hawkpaw said nothing, stopping in his tracks so quickly that the gray and black tom almost bumped into his rear. His amber eyes widened, and he took a shaky step forwards.

"Well," he breathed. "You were _half _right."

In front of them was a decaying prey pile, all centered around a single tree. No, not prey, crowfood. At least several days old, the place was saturated with the scent of rogues and twolegs. Hawkpaw gagged as Hollypaw moved forwards, prodding the crowfood with one claw outstretched, as if it could reanimate and attack at any moment.

A memory flickered at the back of his mind, and Hawkpaw frowned, opening his mouth again to try and draw in scents. Looking into the treetops, he caught a glimpse of Patchfoot's black-and-white fur. Feeling slightly more reassured that the clan's eldest warrior was there, he tried to calm himself, closing his eyes and trying to remember just why this scene felt so familiar. Then—

_There were several small piles of the remnants of prey, dumped by the trunk of a tree just inside the border. Hawkpaw gagged slightly, and he glimpsed Birdpaw having to look away in disgust. He couldn't even tell what species the prey had been, they were so torn apart and rotten. Leafstar moved in front of him after a moment, blocking his view of the scene. _

Piles of prey cracasses had been found like this several times, back when Hawkpaw had just been made an apprentice. But they had always been near the border—never this deep in their territory. Well, as far as he knew.

They had never found out who had done this, and with the arrival of the rogues, they had been all but forgotten—

_Oh._

_Oh, Starclan._

A jolt of fear flashed through him, and he took a step back. He whipped around, nose flaring as he scanned the forest floor to try and find a flash of fur in the undergrowth.

"Hawkpaw…" Hollypaw trailed off. "The crowfood here is old, but it can't have been here very long. The grass around it is still fresh."

That was it.

"We need to leave," Hawkpaw announced, fur spiking along his spine. "We aren't safe here."

Hollypaw nodded almost numbly, stepping back from the crowfood. "You're right," he agreed shakily. "Let's go."

"Oh, but we can't have you leave just yet. The game has only just begun."

The two whipped towards the sound as several unfamiliar cats stepped out of the undergrowth. First came a white tom with black markings around piercing blue eyes. Following him was the tom that had come to camp several moons ago, Forest, a murky gray she-cat, and a bulky black tom.

"I am Darktail," the tom who had spoken, the white one, purred, his eyes landing on Hawkpaw. "You look quite a bit like someone I know, kit. So we are going to have a little _talk_."

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**I hope you like the villian, Olivewhisker ;)**


	15. Chapter 14

**If we get two reviews per chapter from now on, we can hit 25 reviews. Do it for you favorite author? ;P**

**Reviews:**

**Key****—**I'm finding out that I actually really enjoy combining the OC aspect of the fandom with the canon part. Darktail is the only canon rogue from VoS in this rogue group, but Rain will be mentioned in _Divided Future_. But you're going to have to wait and see what happens to Hawkpaw...

**Here we go...**

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"Stupid Tawnypaw. Stupid Firepaw. Stupid clan," Featherpaw muttered to herself, still breathing heavily from how far she had run. The plains around the Twolegplace had long given way to the forests at the very edge of Skyclan territory.

Her horror of how she had reacted to Tawnypaw's taunting had faded away slightly, being replaced with… well, not anger. Not after what had happened when she had last gotten angry. More like… a deep frustration. Why didn't her clanmates understand how good she was getting?! No one had even seemed to notice how well she had been improving ever since she had met Hawkfrost.

She sighed, clawing at the loose dirt floor. She was going to have to go back eventually. She certainly couldn't become a loner over something as silly as this, but she didn't want to face her parents and sister just yet.

She sighed again, louder this time. If only Hawkfrost was still alive, or Ivypaw lived in Skyclan. They'd understand what she was going through. Everyone else seemed to just think that her focus on battle training was bad. It wasn't! She needed to be stronger, to protect her family. Firepaw may be weak, but that just meant that she needed to get even stronger to watch over him. She really didn't see where Tawnypaw got the idea that she was self-centered from. If anything, Tawnypaw fit that description much better than she. She'd switched so fast between avoiding Hawkpaw and trying to become his best friend that it was disconcerting.

"Featherpaw! There you are!"

The brown-and-white she-cat jumped in surprise to see her mentor rushing up to her. Rockshade's ears were pulled back in worry, and he hurried to his apprentice, stopping just a fox-length away from her. Featherpaw sighed as her mentor gazed at her, almost as if he wanted to say something.

"I know you're here to scold me," she spoke, not wanting to give the black tom a chance to lecture her. "I get it, alright? I lost my temper, I was in the wrong, blah blah blah. Now leave me alone."

But her mentor didn't move. Featherpaw eyed him in slight surprise, wondering just what was going on through her mentor's mind. What was he doing?

"Let's go hunting."

The brown-and-white she-cat blinked in surprise at Rockshade's announcement. Hadn't she just attacked her sister and snapped at him to go away? Hawkfrost said cats always had an ulterior motive when asking for a favor. So he had to have a reason; she just couldn't think of one.

Rockshade brushed past her, then turned around when she didn't move.

"Aren't you coming?" He asked, a smile twitching across his features. Deciding that it would be best to follow his command, Featherpaw finally took one step, and then another, until she was trotting after her mentor as they left the border and moved towards the forest deeper inside Skyclan territory. Rockshade didn't say anything in that time, simply keeping his mouth just slightly parted to let in the scents of the forest. Finally, it was just too much.

"Why are we hunting?" She burst as she caught strode alongside her mentor. "I thought that you'd start scolding me or something. Why are we out on our own?"

"You've been focusing on battle and making up those new moves of yours lately," Rockshade shrugged. "So I thought we'd take a break from that and go hunting. When was the last time we've been able to spend time alone, as mentor and apprentice?"

_Since before Bouncefire,_ Featherpaw answered in her head, but felt that it'd be most likely a bad idea to mention the black tom's brother.

They lapsed into silence once again, this time it being slightly more companionable. Featherpaw sighed, annoyed that her original question hadn't prompted the answers she'd wanted, but she let it go for the moment. She had to admit, it was nice to just be out with Rockshade, and not constantly training, either during the day with the clan or at night with Brokenstar and Hawkfrost.

Her nose twitched. _Sparrow._ She glanced around furtively, before her eyes handed on a flash of feathers in the trees to her left. Bunching down into the hunting crouch Rockshade had taught her in her first days as his apprentice, she moved forwards, before remembering the hunting move Hawkfrost had taught her and lowering her spine so it wasn't arching high enough to brush the branches of the undergrowth.

Bunching her hind legs underneath her, she launched herself onto the tree trunk, silently crawling up it to get closer to the sparrow, who had landed on a branch about a third of the way up the tree. Adjusting herself so that she was downwind of the bird, she reached a somewhat equal height to it.

The sparrow twitched, ruffling its wings, and Featherpaw knew she only had heartbeats until it flew off and she missed the catch. She then launched herself at the bird, despite the fact that she wasn't in the best position to pounce. Nevertheless, the bird didn't even see her coming, and she caught it in her claws with ease. Then, she was falling, and she realised that she'd forgotten that there were no branches strong enough to catch her, and the ground was quite a bit of a ways below her.

_Maybe this wasn't so good of an idea._

She thudded on the ground just a heartbeat later, stunning herself slightly. Luckily, though, she recovered before the bird did and hurriedly lunged forwards, snapping its neck.

"Just as I thought. You've gotten rusty, Featherpaw."

"What?" The brown-and-white she-cat blinked, then looked at the dead sparrow at her paws. "I caught the bird!"

"With difficulty. When you realized that the bird was about to fly off, you seemed to forget that you were up in a tree instead of down on the ground. Considering we live in _Sky_clan, that's a bit of an issue."

_And here's the lecture, _Featherpaw sighed. Why didn't he just lecture her like this in the beginning? It would've just saved time and she could've had it over with by now.

"See, Featherpaw, the problem is that you've been focusing way too much on fighting as of late."

Rockshade's voice drug her attention back to him, and she blinked in surprise, once again not expecting the conversation to swing in that direction.

"You seem to think that the solution to everything is to become stronger. And in a way, it is. But not the way you're going about it." Rockshade stepped towards her, his blue eyes glittering with a wisdom she hadn't ever seen in him before. "Sure, becoming strong in battle is good. But you can't just try only in that sole subject and not at anything else. I'm not blind, Featherpaw. I've seen how your number of catches have been dwindling over the past moon. You never pay attention out in hunting patrols and every spare moment you have is spent making up those new moves of yours. You're getting better at fighting, yes, but your social and hunting skills have been failing drastically. If things would've continued at this rate, I would have most likely had to postpone your warrior assessment."

Featherpaw's breath caught in her throat. _What? But Hawkfrost's training…_ She shook herself. _No! Hawkfrost's been a wonderful teacher. I just need to…_ To do what? She was confused. She could hunt just fine! But a tendril of doubt curled in her belly, and the brown-and-white she-cat looked down at her paws, looking at the messy sparrow she had caught. Was Rockshade really right? But Hawkfrost always said that strength was all she would ever need.

She was so confused.

"Just try things out my way, alright?" Rockshade asked with a smile, seeming to be aware of her internal struggle. "And if your training improves more, then we'll go my way. If nothing changes or you get worse, we'll do it your way."

Featherpaw blinked, then let out a sigh.

"I guess…" she mumbled. "This is all just confusing."

Her mentor nodded. "I understand. Just try different things every once in awhile. You need to be more well-rounded. Your dependency on fighting is why you felt that fighting Tawnypaw today was the only way to subdue her. It's not completely your fault, you see. You've just conditioned yourself to think this way,"

"I…" Suddenly, Featherpaw frowned, cutting herself off. Something tickled the back of her nose, a faint tingling that she couldn't place. "Do you smell that?"

Rockshade frowned, opening his mouth and taking in a deep breath. He nodded.

"Something faint," he announced. "I can't seem to recognize it."

Even Rockshade couldn't recognize it? Featherpaw took a deeper breath, trying to deduce where the smell was coming from. The wind howled off to the side, making it harder to get a whiff of the smell, but she persisted, trying to figure it out, until…

The wind's direction changed, blowing up into her face. With it came one of the most disgusting smells Featherpaw had ever experienced. It burned the back of her throat, making her descend into a flurry of coughs, unprepared for such a sudden burst of acidic wind. Rockshade let of a small cry of surprise.

"What is that?" The black tom questioned to himself. "I…" His eyes widened, and he bounded up to one of the taller trees in the grove they had situated themselves in, an ancient oak tree, and jumped up to one of its lower branches. Featherpaw, confused, followed as her mentor leaped with Skyclan-inherited strength from branch to branch, getting higher and higher as they went. Finally, as the tree started bending under their combined weight with that of the wind, Rockshade stopped, Featherpaw just under him. The smell was stronger up here, causing the apprentice to wrinkle her nose in an attempt to filter it out.

"What's going on?" Featherpaw shouted over the wind, but Rockshade didn't immediately reply, instead staring off into the distance, the whites of his eyes showing his sudden terror. The brown-and-white apprentice frowned, before turning to the direction her mentor was looking.

And froze, immediately understanding why her mentor was so afraid.

There was a wall of flames approaching them, fiery tendrils licking at the cloudy sky. Plumes of smoke (so _that_ was what the smell was) were being blown about by the wind. A forest fire. She had never seen one before, and she had thought that such an event was only a scary story passed down from the elders to the kits to scare them—until now.

"F-fire?" She stammered after a moment. The word seemed to shake Rockshade out of his stupor, and he nodded shakily, bounding back down towards the ground. Featherpaw hurried to follow him, stumbling and almost falling several times during her descent due to her shaking paws.

"Fire…" Rockshade breathed, just as shocked. "I-I've never seen one so big before. And it's getting closer…"

"What do we do?!" Featherpaw cried, beginning to panic. "It's burning everything! The forest will be…" she trailed off, feeling sick to her stomach.

"We'll need to warn the clan," Rockshade announced, shaking out his pelt. "Recall all of our patrols and everyone in the forest back to camp. Send all of the Daylight warriors to their Twolegs, and have the rest take cover in camp—the flames won't be able to reach us there."

"Featherpaw! Rockshade!"

The new voice caused both mentor and apprentice to jump in surprise, turning around to see Cherrytail and Sparrowpelt bursting through the undergrowth. Both seemed rather alright, and Featherpaw realised they must not have smelled the smoke from the fire yet if they didn't seem that worried about running through the forest.

"Featherpaw, are you alright?!" Cherrytail exclaimed in worry, licking her daughter worriedly. "You ran out of camp so quick, and we couldn't leave you alone…"

"There's no time for this!" Featherpaw exclaimed. "Fire! The forest is on fire!"

"What?" Sparrowpelt questioned, turning to Rockshade for confirmation. The black tom nodded.

"We need to get back to camp, now!" He responded. "It's still a ways away—we had to climb a tree to see it—but the wind is blowing it in this direction!"

"What?!" Cherrytail exclaimed, her tortoiseshell fur fluffing up in shock as Sparrowpelt blinked in shock and fear. "But… Hawkpaw is out! On his assessment with Hollypaw and Juniperpaw!"

A jolt of fear flashed through Featherpaw's belly at the thought. The fire was getting closer and they needed to leave… but who was going to warn her brother and his friends about the danger?

Sparrowpelt seemed to have the same line of thought, as the dark brown tom drew himself up and shook his head.

"Featherpaw, you're coming with me to find your brother, Juniperpaw, and Hollypaw. Cherrytail, Rockshade, go back to camp and get Waspwhisker and Billystorm to warn the clan. I have a bad feeling about this."

"What?!" Cherrytail exclaimed, flattening her ears at her brother. "I can't just let my kit get put in more danger! Not while Hawkpaw is still out there!"

"Featherpaw is the fastest runner out of the four of us," Sparrowpelt returned just as fiercely. "I'll need her to run for help in case something goes awry while we get everyone in camp. We don't have time to argue. Now go!"

Cherrytail and Rockshade looked conflicted for a moment, before Featherpaw's mentor nodded stiffly and raced into the brush and towards camp. Cherrytail gave her daughter a worried look for several more heartbeats, then finally gave in and ran after Rockshade without another word.

"Follow me, Featherpaw," Sparrowpelt commanded. "Stay close." He bounded off towards their inner territories, and Featherpaw scrambled to follow. "Nettlesplash, Firepaw, Seedtail, and Sandyclaw are on border patrol right now. Juniperpaw, Hawkpaw, Hollypaw, Brambleclaw, Patchfoot, Leafstar and Sharpclaw are on an assessment. Sagenose, Rileypaw, and Creekfeather are on a hunting patrol. We're going to need to find all of them if we want to get everyone back to camp in time. How far away was the fire when you saw it?"

"U-um," Featherpaw stammered, limbs feeling sluggish. How did Sparrowpelt even keep track of all these cats? "I-I don't know. Outside our territory? But just barely."

Sparrowpelt opened his mouth and took a deep breath as he leaped over a fallen branch. The air was now tinged with the scent of smoke.

"We don't have much time," he scowled. "Let's go!"


	16. Chapter 15

**Here we are, the climax! Let me know what you think and if you have any criticisms. We're only four reviews away from the 25 mark!**

**Reviews:**

**Key**—Yeah, Featherpaw sees things a bit differently than the others do, in a large part due to the Dark Forest manipulating her. I'm honestly really excited to write her character arc. As for Darktail and the fire... read here to find out. ;)

**Guest**—Chapter 15 is the furthest that this had been updated at the time of your review. If you got confused by my profile, it says that this story is complete and is updated every Friday

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Hawkpaw's ears flattened as Darktail padded forwards, Forest at his paws. Behind him, Hollypaw took a step back in fear, but squeaked when he nearly collided with another cat stepping out of the brush, a large white tom and a silver-gray she-cat coming in from behind.

The brown tabby apprentice's breaths began to quicken as he realized that they were trapped. He turned to face Darktail, who watched him with icy blue eyes. Anger and malice was practically bubbling off of him, seeping off in trails and waves. Hawkpaw just didn't understand. How had they gotten here, so deep in Skyclan territory, with no one the wiser?

"What do you want to know about us?" Hollypaw asked, trying to put on a brave face, even though his black and gray pelt was brimming with terror. The black tom moved away from the two cats who had appeared behind them, pressing close to Hawkpaw as if he was trying to reassure him.

"Simple," Darktail shrugged. "I have a hunch that I want to confirm. Who are your parents, kit?" He turned back to Hawkpaw.

"Ah…" the brown tabby hesitated, not sure if he should reveal the information. Darktail flicked a tail, getting impatient. Forest stepped forwards and growled threateningly, and that was incentive enough. "Cherrytail! Cherrytail and Brambleclaw!"

Darktail smiled eerily. "So I was right. Cherrytail and Brambleclaw did escape to here. No doubt Eliza is hanging around as well. Thank you, kit." He turned around to face Forest. "Kill them. But make it quick, since they were so cooperative."

"What?!" Hollypaw screeched. Then, everything exploded.

Patchfoot leapt out of the trees and onto Forest, pinning him to the ground and preventing him from running. At the same moment, Sharpclaw and Leafstar dropped out of the branches as well, tackling the two cats behind them. The two cats who were next to Forest launched themselves at Patchfoot as well, forcing the senior warrior to roll out of the way as he took on three cats at once.

"Hawkpaw! Hollypaw!" Leafstar shouted as she ducked a blow from one of the rogues. "Go get help! From Nettlesplash's patrol!"

Oh! Nettlesplash's patrol! Hawkpaw nodded quickly and turned tail to try and run away from the battle, Hollypaw hot on his heels.

But then a cat pounced on top of him, the black she-cat that he had seen behind Darktail earlier, trapping him on the ground. Hollypaw thundered past him and out of sight, however, fear and determination lacing his thoughts. Hawkpaw let out his best war cry against the she-cat, clawing at her eyes in desperation. The she-cat screeched in pain as one of his paws hit her cheek, and that gave him the opportunity to scramble away and face his opponent.

The two cats stared at each other, gasping for breath as the battle raged around then.

"Why?" Hawkpaw asked when the she-cat didn't immediately attack. "Why are you doing this? Why are you trying to hurt my clan?"

"The clans deserve to die for what they've done to us!" The she-cat hissed back. Her mind was awash with a sense of vengeance and anger, confusing Hawkpaw. Why did she feel as if she had a score to settle with Skyclan? "Slowly and painfully!"

"What have we done to you?!"

"Everything! I will avenge my father's disgrace!"

The she-cat then attacked, and Hawkpaw met her head-on, just like Leafstar had taught him, lunging for a bite to her ears. But the she-cat was fast, and easily ducked below the blow to strike at his unprotected belly. The brown tabby yelped at the stinging sensation, and dropped his larger form onto the she-cat's smaller one, causing her to hiss and roll out from under him to avoid being crushed.

They separated for a moment, the wind from the upcoming storm whipping around them and clogging Hawkpaw's nose with the stench of crowfood.

"Why now?" He found himself shouting over the wind. "Why tantalize us like this?!"

The she-cat grinned ferally, sending shivers up Hawkpaw's spine. The pure maliciousness and enjoyment from the battle rolling off of her was answer enough. They wanted to have fun destroying Skyclan.

Then they leapt at each other again, tackling each other in an attempt to get the upper paw on their opponent. Time seemed to hold no sway as they fought, Hawkpaw in defense and the she-cat with an intent to kill. The apprentice winced as a particularly sharp blow scratched at his side, but he retaliated quickly with a bite to her foreleg. Yowls from the rest of the battle sang in his ears, but a combination of both familiar and unfamiliar voices made it nearly impossible to tell who was winning or losing.

Finally, Hawkpaw scored a devastating blow across the she-cat's flank, ripping his claws across her side and gouging out a deep wound. His opponent screeched in pain, stumbling back as blood dripped down from the wound. Hawkpaw himself stepped back, horrified that he had inflicted such a blow. Pain and fear were trickling into the she-cat's mind now, but she held her head high, refusing to give up. Hawkpaw took a deep breath, trying to center himself once again, when a strange scent entered his nostrils. He froze, cocking his head, while trying to keep an eye on the she-cat, who was still trying to recover. The scent was sharp and made him wrinkle his nose and cough when he breathed too much in.

"Do you smell that?" He asked before realizing that he had just asked said question to the enemy and she was definitely not going to answer. He turned around fully now, as the air seemed to get hotter, sharply contrasting the cold wind he'd been dealing with all morning.

Looking through the trees, he was assaulted with a strange glow just slightly too far away to make out fully. The sounds of battle faded into white noise in the back of his mind as he squinted at the brightening light, the air becoming sharper and harder to breathe in. And then he saw what was causing the glow.

A gigantic wall of fire was heading his way. Towards the battle.

"FIRE!" Hawkpaw screamed once he saw it, backing up. "THERE'S A HUGE FIRE!"

He whipped around to see the battle stalling for just a moment. Darktail was nowhere in sight, but Patchfoot was still fighting three on one, while Leafstar was fighting the last two cats. Sharpclaw was also missing, leaving them outnumbered.

But it wasn't just they who heard his cry. The rogues looked up as well, the battle pausing as they looked through the trees to try and see what Hawkpaw had. The few heartbeats that took seemed to last a lifetime, terror momentarily rooting Hawkpaw to his spot.

Then there was a battle cry, and four more cats burst into the fray, the battle beginning to mix into cats trying to escape the fire. The she-cat Hawkpaw had been fighting vanished into the trees, but the tabby didn't pay much attention to her, knowing she was defeated.

"Hawkpaw! Hawkpaw, are you alright?"

The brown tabby blinked, and turned to see Seedtail, of all cats, rushing towards him, panic and worry flaring off of her as she searched him for wounds.

"I'm fine," Hawkpaw murmured, eyes wide. "How did you…?" He trailed off as his initial panic seeped away, replaced with fear but having lessened enough to allow him to make the connections necessary to realize that Nettlesplash, Sandyclaw, and Featherpaw were the ones who had leapt into battle to help their clanmates, not some strange shapes.

"Featherpaw found us." Seedtail's breaths were deep, and Hawkpaw realized that she had most likely sprinted a long way to get here. "Started talking about a fire coming from the direction of the rising sun. We came to look for you and found you all fighting. Are you hurt anywhere?"

Suddenly, a shocked yowl rose above the screeched of battle, and Seedtail and Hawkpaw whipped around almost in unison.

Leafstar had fallen to the ground, a deep wound having gouged out her throat and leaving the grass below her stained red. Above her stood the silver-gray she-cat Hawkpaw had spotted earlier, sporting several wounds herself. Featherpaw had been the one to let out the cry, and was presently only a fox-length away from the murder.

"Moonlight," Seedtail hissed, ears flattening. Anger and guilt flashed off of her pelt, making Hawkpaw start. What personal vendetta did the spotted she-cat have against a random rogue? "I thought I had scared you off when we defeated you three moons ago."

"Eliza," Moonlight practically purred, her voice sickenly sweet as she stepped easily over the body of Leafstar. Hawkpaw found himself desperately trying to reach out to his mentor and leader, but was only met with an emptiness rushing off of her that left a cold pit in his stomach. "I knew that we would meet again, though I have to admit, I almost didn't recognize you when we met back then. Why don't you and your friends just give yourselves up already? Let all of this finally end."

It was getting hotter, bit by bit. They needed to leave. Now. But Hawkpaw and the other cats found themselves frozen, watching the confrontation between who he realized now were lifelong enemies, if the crackling animosity and hatred that crackled between the two she-cats was anything to go by.

"My _name _is Seedtail," his parents' friends hissed. "And I have no idea where Brambleclaw and Cherrytail are. We parted ways after escaping."

"So you did end up joining the clan after all," Moonlight mused. "And don't play dumb with me. That kit behind you has already confessed to being their son."

Before Seedtail could answer, however, there was a warcry, tearing the observers out of their stuptors to see Sandyclaw tackling Moonlight, who was completely unprepared. Almost instantly, the other rogues either attacked or began to flee, as Seedtail rushed over to fight Moonlight with Sandyclaw.

"You killed my sister's mentor!" The light brown tom was shouting, grief and anger fueling his strength. "I'm going to avenge Bouncefire!"

Hawkpaw took a step back, sparing a glance behind him to the fire rushing even closer. The smoke from it was making it more difficult to breathe. What should he do? Rush into the battle and help Seedtail? But she seemed to be doing rather well on her own, and the fire would kill them all unless the rogues and his clanmates would actually _listen_ and run!

But even as he thought, Moonlight wrenched herself away from the combined efforts of Seedtail and Sandyclaw, and let out a wild yowl.

"Retreat, Cyanide! Let the fire burn them to the ground!"

Immediately, the rogues obeyed her, all of them doing exactly as Moonlight commanded and separating themselves from the battle. Seedtail gritted her teeth as the rogues raced away, practically holding Sandyclaw back from pursuing at this point.

"This is no longer a place to hold a battle," she hissed at the young warrior, coughing when she inhaled too much smoke. "Come on! We'll be safe once we cross the river!"

"Let's go!" Nettlesplash shouted.

"But what about Leafstar?!" Featherpaw cried.

"We got her!" Patchfoot responded, rushing over to grab his leader's body by the scruff of her neck. Seedtail hurried to help her clanmates get away.

Hawkpaw hurried to try and aide his friends, but a flicker of silver flashed in the corner of his eye. Blinking in surprise, he turned to see another, unknown cat standing off to the side, stars flickering in his pelt. He looked… familiar…

"Jayfeather?!" He exclaimed, then looked to his clanmates to see how they were reacting. But they didn't turn to face him at all. Nettlesplash was helping Featherpaw get away, and Seedtail and Patchfoot were trying to get Leafstar away. It was almost as if… he'd been forgotten.

"Hawkpaw." The brown tabby turned to Jayfeather, not knowing what to say when he was addressed. The fire was closer now, only a tree-length away, yet it seemed to be on the other side of the world when he looked at the Starclan cat. It had been moons since Hawkpaw had last seen him; why was Jayfeather here now?

Jayfeather said nothing more, but nothing needed to be said. He tilted his muzzle off to the right, angled away from both SkyClan's camp and the fire. Hawkpaw took a few steps in that direction, then a scent caught in his nose. _Sharpclaw and one of the rogues._ But why them? Certainly, Sharpclaw could handle himself, and Hawkpaw wasn't partial to helping the tom who hated him and his family.

"You want me to follow them and not my clanmates." It was phrased as a statement, not a question. Jayfeather nodded shortly, and then his body disintegrated, disappearing into the thick smoke.

Hawkpaw hesitated for only a moment, glancing back to his clanmates as they whisked out of sight, then took a deep breath, coughed several times as he choked on the smoke, and took off as fast as his paws could take him. He may not like Sharpclaw, but he wasn't about to disobey Jayfeather, a Starclan cat. He bent down low to try and escape some of the smoke and keep on the path of Sharpclaw and the other rogue, the scent of the fire almost completely covering up the very recent scent trail. He ducked under brush and leapt over bushes, having to double back twice when he accidentally lost the trail. Thankfully, he was able to leave the majority of the fire behind him when the wind died down partially, clearing away some of the heavy smoke that hung in the air.

Sides heaving, he finally slowed in a grove of trees to take a breath and try and reorient himself when he lost one of the cats' trails. He could still scent Sharpclaw's scent, but the rogue's had suddenly disappeared. Frowning, he turned back to try and find where the rogue had gone, when—

"Hawkpaw! Get out of here!"

Hawkpaw whipped around, catching sight of Sharpclaw racing towards him, sporting several deep wounds on the side of his throat and flank. He was breathing deeply, and Darktail appeared shortly after him, having several scratches himself but less harmed. Where Sharpclaw excluded worry, anger, and determination, the rogue was all confidence and simmering anger.

Several heartbeats passed, and neither tom moved, Hawkpaw included. Sharpclaw shot a sharp look at him, but Hawkpaw held his ground, determined to listen to Jayfeather and help the deputy, no matter what their current relationship was.

Then Darktail attacked, and Sharpclaw could no longer spare the attention to tell him to leave. Hawkpaw barely hesitated, jumping at Darktail, determined to defeat him.

Sharpclaw faltered in surprise as he entered the fight, but soon he was fighting even more vigorously. Darktail was outnumbered now, and even though Hawkpaw was only an apprentice, outnumbering the rogue leader was all Sharpclaw needed to push back.

They fought for a moment, until Darktail tore himself away, making as if to run before pausing.

"You come back here, and I will not hesitate to kill you," Sharpclaw hissed, ears flat. Darktail smirked.

"You are so naïve," he laughed. "After this fire, Skyclan will be destroyed! And Cyanide will come, and finish you all off."

"We'll be waiting," Sharpclaw rebuffed proudly. Hawkpaw nodded, forcing himself to stand firm and look confident despite his aching wounds. Darktail gave one last smirk, and then he dashed away into the undergrowth, he black-tipped tail flickering out of sight.

"We—we need to go, too," Hawkpaw gasped once the rogue had left. "The fire, it's getting too close." Indeed, Hawkpaw felt as if his fur was about to be burnt off from the heat, and he was gasping for breath, trying to get enough air to breathe through the smoke.

"Yes," Sharpclaw gasped. He sagged suddenly, almost collapsing until Hawkpaw hurried to give him a supporting shoulder. The fight must've taken more out of him than the apprentice had thought. He looked to see what wounds Sharpclaw had obtained, and gasped when he saw the scratches he'd noticed earlier were in fact deep gashes, just shy of the tom's throat, that trailed down to his chest and stained his ginger fur a dark, crimson red. "Go. Go without me. I can barely stand now; I'll only slow you down."

_What?!_

There was a ferocious roaring in his ears now, but Hawkpaw only stood there in shock, fur blowing in the wind as he tried to process what he'd just been told to do.

"But—but you'll die!" And he reached out to his deputy, trying to find anything that could aid him in his case. But there was only grim acceptance, a twinge of relief, and a good portion of… fear.

"I know. But you are much more important than I am." Sharpclaw looked down at Hawkpaw, and his eyes flashed as realization burned in his mind. A young tree, nearly enveloped in flames, fell to the ground. "Oh, I understand now." And then he pressed forwards, so that they were nearly nose-to-nose. "The clan depends on you now. _You_ were the one given the prophecy. Tell Echosong that. And tell your mother I love her, and that I accept that she will never return my feelings. Finally."

Hawkpaw's ears flattened as he tried to process the information. Him? A prophecy? Sharpclaw was _in love_ with Cherrytail?!

"I thought you looked too much like your father," Sharpclaw laughed hoarsely, and a blinding pain blazed off of him now, unable to be contained any longer. The Skyclan deputy staggered, but managed to stay on his feet. "And for that I apologise. Now go." Hawkpaw couldn't move. The fire was here now, they had to leave, but— "GO!"

He took one step backwards, then another. His foot landed on something scalding hot, and Hawkpaw yelped, lifting his back paw to see that he'd stepped on a burning branch that had fallen. He looked back at Sharpclaw, taking him in, and finally seeing the tom for who he was, for the first and last time.

"I forgive you," he whispered, and he didn't know if Sharpclaw replied or if he had even heard him, because he was running, running away as fast as he could. He pelt burned, his injuries screamed and his sight was nearly nonexistent, but he kept on running. It was almost as if someone was guiding his paws, ensuring that he didn't fall or slow down.

He didn't look back, but the image of Sharpclaw turning towards the fire, closing his eyes as the flames enveloped him, was burned into his mind.


	17. Chapter 16

**Last Chapter! Only an Epilogue to go! Can we still get to 25 reviews?**

**Brambleclaw's past is finally revealed and Hawkpaw has a serious discussion with Echosong. Let me know what you think!**

* * *

"There you go, Hawkpaw. Anything else you feel that's hurting?"

Echosong's voice was quiet and comforting, soothing like the honey she'd been dripping down his throat every so often for a couple hours now. They'd been sitting in the medicine den for the duration of that time as the silver tabby worked on his and his clanmates' wounds. The cave was cool against his skin, and Hawkpaw shrugged as he finally registered Echosong's question. He winced, then, as the wound the rogue she-cat had given him groaned in protest.

"It's going to be alright, Hawkpaw."

The brown tabby nearly scoffed at the medicine cat's words. No it wasn't. He could practically feel the exhaustion, grief, and worry pooling around her. How could she say things would go back to normal when she herself didn't know?

It was evening, now. The battle had long since ended, yet the fire was continuing to rage across the forest. Hawkpaw had nearly slept through the rest of the day himself, once he'd collapsed near the tree bridge after running across more than half the territory. It had been Brambleclaw and Juniperpaw who had found him and helped him into camp. Apparently, they'd been attacked by rogues as well, and had been unable to help out Hawkpaw when he and his group had been attacked by Darktail. From what he'd heard, the entire clan had been huddling in camp ever since.

Sharpclaw was dead. There was no doubt about that, though they hadn't found his body yet. Leafstar had lost a life (Hawkpaw didn't know which one it had been, though Tawnypaw had guessed it had been her fourth or fifth). Creekfeather was dead, as his hunting patrol hadn't gotten news of the fire in time. Sagenose and Rileypaw had lost him to a falling tree as they had tried to escape. Featherpaw had a deep gash along her flank that was sure to scar, Patchfoot's leg had been dislocated when he'd jumped out of that tree (how he had been able to continue fighting afterwards, Hawkpaw didn't know), and both he, Sagenose and Rileypaw had sustained burns. The fur on Sagenose's right flank had almost entirely been singed off, leaving a blistered patch in his wake, while Rileypaw had managed to get away with only reddened skin.

All in all, Skyclan, once again, had been thoroughly defeated.

Dozens of questions flooded Hawkpaw's mind, from Sharpclaw's final words to worry over Featherpaw's wound. He could feel her discomfort from across the den, where the brown-and-white she-cat had made her nest. Though she seemed to have calmed down after her little episode that morning (oh, how insignificant it seemed now!), she still had insisted on sleeping on her own. Tawnypaw was off treating Sagenose, who was lying on his uninjured side, pain and shock making a headache-inducing feeling come over Hawkpaw whenever he concentrated on the tom.

"Echosong, what should I give to Sagenose? He seems to be in a lot of pain right now and I'm not sure what to do about it."

Starclan, Hawkpaw barely even recognized Tawnypaw's voice, she sounded so small and uncertain. He shifted in his nest as Echosong looked away, unable to stop the guilt that came rising up in him as he did so. He knew that none of this was his fault, especially with whatever was going on with Tawnypaw, but he couldn't help it. The negative emotions were just too smothering right now not to feel as if at least part of it was his fault.

"Do we have any more honey? Or poppy seeds?" Echosong asked, and Tawnypaw shook her head.

"You used the last of the honey on Hawkpaw, and I gave the last of the poppy seeds to Ravenpaw. He's been having so much trouble just sleeping lately; I thought he needed it."

There was a flash of exasperation, signalling that Echosong didn't think that giving away the last poppy seed like that was a good idea, but it was gone as soon as it came. The elder she-cat wasn't angry, thank goodness.

"Then give him some coltsfoot to ease his breathing, and try putting some stinging nettle on the burns to bring down the swelling. I can't think of much else we can do at this point except let it cool down." She blinked. "Oh! Get Bellapaw and Hollypaw to soak some moss in the river. Cold water might help as well."

"Yes, mentor." Tawnypaw shot Hawkpaw a half-comforting expression, a feeling of helplessness rushing through her, and ducked out of the den, her tail whisking out of sight.

"Thanks," Sagenose murmured, his voice having deepened from the pain. Pity flickered off of Echosong's pelt.

"Of course." She turned back to Hawkpaw. "Are you sure you don't need anything else patched up?"

Hawkpaw nodded. He was practically covered in herbs already, and in general felt sticky and sore all over. Oh, was this horrible day ever going to end?

"You should sleep now," Echosong announced quietly. Her eyes drew over the warriors in the medicine den; it was crowded full with the injured cats, most of whom were sleeping. "Get your strength back."

Hawkpaw shook his head. His body wasn't tired, only his mind.

"You _were the one given the prophecy."_

Sharpclaw's voice filtered back into his mind, and Hawkpaw blinked, remembering the deputy's last words as if they had just been spoken a moment ago. _Prophecy…? What did he mean by that?_ He frowned, trying to think of what the old deputy could've been referring to.

Then…

_Sharpclaw pressed forwards, so that they were nearly nose-to-nose. "The clan depends on you now. _You _were the one given the prophecy."_

"_Skyclan has grown the roots it has needed to survive," Spiderstar announced. "And now it is time to use them. It has been given to the one who holds the power of the stars in his paws. It is up to you to find this cat."_

"_Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path."_

_It…_. and "it" was—

"Echosong!"

The medicine cat jolted, turning around from where she'd been sorting her remaining herbs in a flash as panic flared up in her pelt. She looked him over, and upon finding nothing wrong, relaxed slightly. But Hawkpaw sat up, ramrod straight, from his position in his nest despite how his muscles protested, intent on telling her what he'd _finally _figured out.

"Poison will spread, and the sky will flee. Star and dark shall fall in the river's path. That's the prophecy, isn't it?"

Echosong froze, then turned around slowly, her green eyes wide.

"The prophecy," she murmured. "You have it. The power of the stars in your paws."

"I should've noticed it sooner," Hawkpaw shook his head, a hysterical chuckle making its way past his throat. "Sharpclaw got it, right before…." His throat closed, so Hawkpaw skipped over the last word and continued. "It makes sense now. I'm sorry, I received the prophecy when I was apprenticed, but I didn't understand. I was so focused on my training and after that with the rogues, I—"

"Shush." Echosong sat down next to him, her pelt just barely brushing against his. "It's not your fault. You came to me as soon as you figured it out, and that's all I can ask for. Now, can you tell me everything you know?"

* * *

"Sneaking out of camp, I see. Are you sure you won't reopen your wound again?"

Featherpaw blinked in surprise, looking over from where she'd been gazing up at the stars to see Brambleclaw padding up to her. The young she-cat shifted her paws uncomfortably, ears flattening as she realized that she'd been caught.

"Sorry," she muttered after a moment, feeling as if she had to say _something_. The air was thick with smoke from the fire, and with the dark, rain-heavy clouds covering the sky, the night was almost pitch-black, the only light coming in dim rays from the Twolegplace and the fire still burning in the forest.

"It's alright," her father replied easily, situating himself next to her. "You felt like you needed time to think, didn't you?"

Featherpaw had snuck out of the medicine den a little while earlier, while Echosong was deep in conversation with Hawkpaw about something. The cave had felt too crowded for her to sleep comfortably, and yet her feet had carried her to here, on top of the gorge, instead of the apprentice's den. She still wasn't sure why.

"Maybe," she replied quietly and completely truthfully. They sat there for a moment, in companionable silence, before Brambleclaw spoke again.

"I'm sorry for all of this," he murmured, amber eyes clouding. "This is my fault."

Featherpaw blinked, surprised. She shuffled her feet, doing her best not to aggravate the wound on her flank, before asking the obvious question.

"What do you mean by that?"

"Darktail was looking for me," Brambleclaw sighed. "Me, Cherrytail, and Seedtail, but mostly me. You and Hawkpaw got caught in the crossfire because of that. You and the rest of the clan."

"Dad," Featherpaw paused, taking in a deep breath before continuing. "You said, back when Ravenpaw and Barley first arrived, that your past was something for me to hear when I was older. Darktail is part of the reason why, isn't it?"

Brambleclaw frowned, looking conflicted, before speaking again.

"Featherpaw. Have you ever wondered why I never told you what my name was before I joined the clan? When I was a loner?"

"No, not really. It honestly never occured to me. Seedtail's was Eliza, wasn't it?"

"Yes. It was short for Elizabeth."

"What was your name?"

"I never changed it. I was Brambleclaw as a loner."

"Why is that? That's a clan name."

"It's because I was born a clan cat."

Featherpaw froze, her mouth dropping open. _What?_ Dozens of questions blazed in her mind, but Brambleclaw hurried to continue before she could ask any of them.

"I was born to two warriors from Thunderclan, Featherpaw. Firestar was my mentor when I was young, and later on I was his deputy."

"What?! Why did you leave?" Her father knew—had been _mentored_ by and _deputy _to—the great Firestar?! If it had been any other day, Featherpaw would've been furious that she had been kept out of the loop about this, perhaps even betrayed that her father thought she couldn't handle it. But today wasn't any normal day, and she honestly couldn't muster up the energy needed to be angry at him like she usually would've when given a revelation like this. She didn't even doubt him, because her father wouldn't lie like this to her after the events that had taken place today. Now, all she had were questions.

"That is a long story, but I'll simplify as much of it as I can for you. Like I said, I was Firestar's deputy when I was younger. I went with him when the clans left the forest, like Barley told you—I helped us find a new home, too, around a lake."

"What's a lake?"

"Think a giant puddle." Brambleclaw chuckled, his eyes far away as he recalled distant memories. "One so large that you could hardly see the other side, and so deep that you can't touch the bottom."

"Oh." She tried to think of something like that, but all that came to mind was a really big river, and she didn't think that was right. "It's difficult."

"Yes, it is, isn't it? Anyways, I was deputy of Thunderclan. I had a sister, friends, enemies. I also…" he paused for a moment, as if considering something, then pushed onwards. "Had a mate. And kits."

Wait, _what_?

Featherpaw looked up in shock. Now she was definitely feeling betrayed, and more than a little angry. But then who was she to him? Who was this mate and kits, and why had he left them? There were so many questions, but Brambleclaw didn't give her a moment to voice them.

"Listen until the end of the story until you judge me, alright? Now, I had a good life in Thunderclan, and I won't lie when I say that was truly happy there. I loved my family and my clan, and took pride in the fact that Firestar thought well enough of me to make me his deputy. But…" he sighed, amber eyes full of longing and pain. "A crucial part of it was a lie."

Featherpaw looked over at her father, trying to process the information.

"My kits were not my kits."

Featherpaw blinked, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Featherpaw, you remember how medicine cats cannot have kits, right?" She nodded. "Well, my old mate was a she-cat called Squirrelflight. Her sister, Leafpool, had gotten pregnant as a medicine cat—with a tom from another clan, at that. That was something very bad, Featherpaw. More than it would be here. Leafpool was very scared. Her kits would be shunned for not being born like the other clan kits and not get the same opportunities as a full-blooded clan cat. So she went to Squirrelflight, and asked her to take the kits and raise them on her own."

Featherpaw nodded, remembering. Ivypaw had told her this story, actually, though only in the context that her sister's mentor, Lionblaze, was a half-clan cat, and that his mother was the clan's medicine cat, Leafpool. The Thunderclan apprentice had never mentioned Brambleclaw, though. Was Lionblaze Brambleclaw's "son"? She made a mental note to ask next time they trained.

"They didn't trust me, Featherpaw. I hope you can understand that. They didn't trust me to not go to Firestar and report the situation to him. And that, I think, is what ended my relationship with Squirrelflight. We loved each other—that was something I never doubted, even today—but when push came to shove, she didn't trust me to help her raise the kits without not thinking that they were mine."

"How did you find out that they weren't yours?" She asked quietly.

"The kits found out before I did. Hollyleaf, my daughter, revealed it at a Gathering. Everyone found out. My relationship with my kits was shattered, and Leafpool lost her status as a medicine cat. I left Squirrelflight, and tried to recover what was left over my life. Lionblaze and Jayfeather, the other two kits in the litter, moved on, even if they wanted nothing to do with me. Started on the road to it, at least."

"But?" Leafpool was a medicine cat now. How had she regained her position?

Brambleclaw took a moment to respond, and when he did, his voice was husky with emotion. "Hollyleaf had always been the one the most attached to the code. She was the rule-follower, the one who'd _volunteer _to go on the dawn patrol." He laughed softly. "I loved her so much for it. And so I guess it should have been no surprise when the revelation of her parentage broke her. She began looking for scapegoats. She killed Ashfur, a warrior, then began to fight against Jayfeather for control over the clan when he voiced his concerns over the influence she held over many of our warriors." He paused again, an expression of extreme pain crossing his face, and his voice dropped to a whisper. "I'm not sure when it happened, but at one point, Hollyleaf's deterioration crossed the threshold from obsession to madness. She acted very well with the other cats, but I had been her father since she was a kit; I could tell that something was up.

"There came a day when I caught Hollyleaf talking to the warriors of another clan, asking them to aid her in taking over in return for territory. I stayed out of sight until they left and confronted her about it. She attacked before I got out a full sentence." He brought up a paw to brush against the jagged scar along his throat. "She gave me this scar. I almost died."

Featherpaw wasn't asking questions anymore, both entraptured and horrified by the story.

"The only reason I survived even this wound was thanks to Starclan. As we fought, you see, the ground collapsed beneath me, soft and weak from recent rain. I fell in, and nearly suffocated to death before escaping to find myself in an underground cave. I don't know what happened to Hollyleaf, but I nursed myself back to full health and found a way out of the cave through a system of tunnels underneath the territory. However, when I made it to the surface, I was far outside Thunderclan territory, and completely lost.

"I wandered for a while. Tried to find Thunderclan and warn them about Hollyleaf. But I think I went the wrong way, because I never did. Instead, I ran into you mother, Cherrytail, and Seedtail. Cherrytail had been captured by Twolegs, and Seedtail was a former kittypet who had helped her escape. Cherrytail had an idea where Skyclan was, and invited me to join her and Seedtail to come here. I debated it for a while, and almost said no. But eventually, I caved in. We travelled for a moon or so before we found the river, and subsequently ran into Darktail's rogue group. They call themselves Cyanide, after a poison that Twolegs use to kill cats. We stayed there for a while, until we discovered Darktail's malicious intent. He was the son of a clan cat who'd abandoned him at birth, and he grew up not in the right state of mind. He blames everything bad in the world on clan cats. So when he discovered I had been friends with his father…" he winced, and nodded towards the faded scar that could just barely be seen across his flank. "I got this scar. It was only thanks to Cherrytail that we escaped.

"Some time during all this, I realized that I had fallen in love with your mother. Shortly after escaping Darktail, I asked her to be my mate. By the time we made it to Skyclan, she was pregnant." He smiled softly. "Then you four were born. I chose your names, you know, because Cherrytail wanted me to always remember the cats I had been close to before I had come to Skyclan. So I named you after Jayfeather and Feathertail, my adopted son and a close friend who saved my life. Tawnypaw's name came from Tawnypelt, my sister. Firepaw, as you could probably guess, came from Firestar. And I named Hawkpaw after Hawkfrost, my half-brother."

Featherpaw ears perked up in surprise. Hawkpaw was named after Hawkfrost? Hawkfrost was Brambleclaw's half-brother? Suddenly, it made a lot of sense as to why the deceased warrior had taken such an interest in her. A warm feeling rose in her belly. She was being trained by her uncle!

"Thanks for telling me," she spoke after a moment, quietly. "I don't blame you, you know. I don't think anyone does."

"Thank you," Brambleclaw smiled softly. "That's what Leafstar and Cherrytail are saying as well. But I still led them here. No doubt they want revenge for what I did to them. Darktail already has a death wish upon the clans; now he has an excuse to go through with it. It's why I tried to keep my origins as a clan cat private; if word of a Thunderclan cat living in Skyclan reached the rogues, it might have brought Darktail here much sooner."

Featherpaw didn't say anything for a while, and when she did, she changed the subject slightly to adjust for her most burning question.

"Do you… Do you still love your first mate? Squirrelflip or whatever?"

She certainly didn't like her. Who didn't tell their mate a secret like that?

"That is a complicated question," Brambleclaw murmured. Featherpaw looked at him in shock, and he hurried to continue. "But before I explain, Featherpaw, you have to know that I will _never_ be her mate again. Not only do we have our past... disagreements, but Cherrytail, you and your littermates are my entire world now. I would never leave you for anything, and I hope you know that. Do I still love Squirrelflight? If I'm completely honest, yes, though it is tainted with betrayal and much lessened compared to the love I have for my current family."

Featherpaw didn't really know what to say to that. Part of her was glad that he loved her family more, but the other half felt immensely betrayed that he was still in love with someone else, however small it may be.

But she didn't get the chance to voice all of that.

"Cats of Skyclan, please gather around the Rockpile for a clan meeting!"

Featherpaw and Brambleclaw shared a surprised look. It was moonhigh already? Then again, no one could tell with the overcast sky. Leafstar had probably just guessed.

"Featherpaw. Before we go down, can I ask you a question?"

Featherpaw paused for a moment, watching as the clan crept out of their dens, save for Tinycloud and Rabbitleap, who were standing guard.

"Sure."

"Do you want things to keep on going the way they were?"

Featherpaw blinked, then replied softly. "Of course." How could she ask for things to change when everything around them was whirling in a storm of change?

Brambleclaw smiled back at her, and together, they padded down through camp and towards the Rockpile. Most of the clan was already there, and they sat down next to Cherrytail, near the back of the crowd. The tortoiseshell she-cat intertwined her tail with Brambleclaw's in a sign of comfort, and sent her daughter a worried look. Featherpaw just looked away, feeling as if she had gone through enough soul-searching for the day. She was just exhausted.

Firepaw bounded over to them, ears flat in worry. He said nothing, simply plopping himself down next to Cherrytail and nuzzling into her fur. His mother purred softly, giving her son a reassuring lick on the forehead, as if he was a kit again.

"Cats of Skyclan," Leafstar began. Featherpaw looked up to watch her speak. Despite losing Skyclan's first deputy and a life, her leader still seemed regal and strong, despite the near absence of light. "We have suffered a great tragedy today. Two of the finest warriors in our clan have passed. We mourn the loss of Sharpclaw and Creekfeather, and pray that they are safe in Starclan. In the morning, we will look for their bodies, and work to avenge them, but now is a time of mourning what we have lost." She dipped her head and allowed for a moment of silence. "First, will Hollypaw and Juniperpaw please step forward?"

Featherpaw blinked in surprise and looked up at Brambleclaw, who also seemed caught a little off guard, though he seemed to radiate a bit of pride as well. When she looked back at the meeting, her two friends had already stood up and walked to the base of the Rockpile, Hollypaw barely a dark shape in the night sky.

"Brambleclaw and Patchfoot, have Hollypaw and Juniperpaw completed their warrior training as you see fit?"

"He has," Brambleclaw answered.

"I am proud of how well Hollypaw has advanced," Patchfoot added from his place near the medicine den.

"Thank you. Then I, Leafstar, leader of Skyclan," Leafstar announced, looking down at the two toms. "Call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these two apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in turn." She lept down from the Rockpile, and turned to Juniperpaw first. "Juniperpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," the cream tom breathed. Leafstar's gaze flickered over to Hollypaw.

"Hollypaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?"

"I do," the daylight apprentice echoed softly.

"Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Juniperpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Juniperpelt. StarClan honors your cleverness and initiative. Hollypaw, from this moment on you will be known as Hollyfrost. StarClan honors your patience and speed, and we welcome you both as full warriors of Skyclan."

"Juniperpelt! Hollyfrost!"

The cries echoed through the gorge, and Featherpaw couldn't help but ask herself if their voices sounded louder than usual.

"And now, it is time to appoint the next deputy of Skyclan," Leafstar began, voice heavy. The clan shifted as Juniperpelt and Hollyfrost rejoined the crowd, everyone waiting to see who would become next in line for leadership of the clan.

Featherpaw herself wondered who would be a good choice for deputy. If Ebonyclaw hadn't been a daylight warrior, she would've thought it to be her. Maybe it would be Cherrytail or Waspwhisker. Her heart rose slightly at the thought of the former. Imagine that, being the daughter of the deputy of Skyclan.

Then again, wasn't she technically the daughter of the deputy of Thunderclan?

Leafstar spoke again. "I say these words before StarClan, so that the spirits of our warrior ancestors and Sharpclaw himself may hear and approve of my choice. The new deputy of Skyclan shall be Sparrowpelt."

Sparrowpelt! The brown tabby stepped forwards, looking as if he both expected and didn't anticipate the calling at the same time. Leafstar jumped down to him, and the two exchanged whispered words before Sparrowpelt dipped his head.

"I will do everything in my ability to help you lead this clan," he declared. "And we will avenge our clanmates."

Leafstar nodded, and flicked her tail, motioning for Sparrowpelt to follow her. Billystorm joining them (it seemed that he would be staying overnight), they leapt up to the leader's den, most likely to plan for the next couple days.

The crowd dispersed slowly. Raindrops began to fall as thunder echoed through the sky, promising to end the blaze that was ravaging the forest across the river. There was a shadow nearing them, and Featherpaw had to squint in order to make out that it was actually Tawnypaw and Hawkpaw, the latter walking with a slight limp, like she was, but moving nonetheless. She locked eyes with her brother, and knew something was up. He seemed relieved and worried at the same time, as if the fate of the clan had been placed on his shoulders to bear alone.

But in the end they said nothing, and Tawnypaw and Hawkpaw simply took their spots next to them, and they sat there together, as if trying to reassure themselves that they were all there.

Featherpaw was reminded of a time long ago, where they sat in this same spot and cheered on Harrybrook and Stormheart as they received their warrior names.


	18. Epilogue

**Wow. Wow. Thank you all so much! I was hardly expecting to reach 25 reviews, much less 29! I'll do my best to answer them here. More notes about my reflections on **_**Secrets of the Past**_**, and information on how we are going to continue, will be at the end of the epilogue.**

**Reviews:**

**Key (Chapter 16)—**Thanks! I'm still iffy on the Darktail vs Sharpclaw/Hawkpaw part, but it's a relief you know you liked it!

**Key (17)—**Thanks again, haha. I hope you're just as satisfied with the next book.

**Dewcloud (14)—**Ughhhhh. I had the best name for Featherpaw already picked out, but now you've got Feathershade stuck in my head. It's just so pretty!

**Dewcloud (17)—**That was the point. Cyanide is lurking on the horizon, and what happened to Thunderclan after Brambleclaw left is still a mystery. Glad you enjoyed this!

**Fern (4)—**Check chapter 17 ;). Nice to see a new reviewer!

**Fern (6)—**Sorry, but I'm not accepting OCs from the clans, since this is based on the canon allegiances from OotS. If you're okay with her backstory being changed, however, I can still include her as a character! Looking forward to seeing that second OC :).

**Fern (8)—**Featherpaw will not be the only one to join the Dark Forest… mwahahaha…

**Embers (17)—**Hey! It's nice to see you again :). I'd like to say that Bramble actually didn't take the lying worse than in canon; he just never had the chance to make up with Squirrel and understand why she did what she did. Now that he's mates with Cherry, he's even less inclined to do so. You'll have to see what happened to Thunderclan and Holly in the next book….

Really? Thanks! I actually first wrote Darktail without having read AVoS, so maybe that's why you like him more. I have read the series now, but I do plan on keeping much of his characterization from Chapter 17. And Sparrowpelt is a good boi.

Hawkpaw is a bit dense, haha, and Featherpaw a bit blinded by the chance for power. Too bad Bramble doesn't want her to know much more about her past...

* * *

The Dark Forest had grown in numbers in the past moons. More and more cats were beginning to arrive in the dark shadows, training for a battle that they had no idea was going to occur.

In a clearing near a muddy, odorous river, two apprentices were sparring intensely under the gaze of a dark tabby warrior who was sporting several scars. As he watched, the silver apprentice scored a blow against the brown one, drawing blood with unsheathed claws. The brown she-cat hissed in pain, but otherwise barely flinched as she tackled the other she-cat, throwing them into a roll that brought them dangerously close to the river. However, the silver she-cat was able to regain control, flip herself over the brown cat, and lightly nip at her neck.

"I win," Ivypaw grinned. Featherpaw groaned as she wriggled out of her friend's grip, favoring her right shoulder where she'd been struck as she stood up. Wincing, she rolled the joint to try and stretch it and adjusted her weight over to her left side.

"_This_ time," she responded cheekily. "Sheesh, though, did you have to hit so hard? I'm going to be at a disadvantage when I spar Hawkpaw tomorrow."

"Oh, stop complaining," Ivypaw rolled her eyes as they came to stand side-by-side to face Hawkfrost and listen to what he had to say about the fight.

"Both of you made several mistakes," Hawkfrost began, ice blue eyes dragging over the two of them. "Featherpaw, the tackle you attempted was very rushed and ineffective because you didn't give yourself the time to amass the strength you needed to succeed. In the end you almost dumped the two of you in the river, and then there would have been no winner and I would have lost my two best apprentices. Understand?"

"Yes, sir," Featherpaw nodded, though she shared a knowing look with Ivypaw that passed the pride of being apprenticed to such a great warrior between them.

"And Ivypaw, your footing was off multiple times throughout the fight, and as such you stumbled. If you had been fighting a Shadowclan warrior, you would have been dead before you managed to get in a solid hit. I want you to fix that next time we meet." He turned. "Come. We're going to meet some new clanmates."

"Wait, Hawkfrost!" Featherpaw's tail shot up as she spoke. "I've been meaning to ask you. Why didn't you say that Brambleclaw was your brother? I had no idea that we were kin before he told me a couple days ago."

"You're Hawkfrost's _kin_?!" Ivypaw exclaimed, shocked. "Through Brambleclaw? But he's dead! He died before I was born!"

"No he didn't," Featherpaw responded energetically. "I just found out too, but he lived! He got separated from the clan and ended up in Skyclan. He's a warrior there now. And my _father_. Isn't that cool?!"

"No way," Ivypaw breathed. "So cool."

"It doesn't matter," Hawkfrost interrupted them, his tone ice cold. "I don't put much weight in familial connections. Though," he smirked. "The two of you _are_ related as well, you know. Very distantly, through Firestar. Both your mothers are descended from him, did you know that?"

"My mother was born a kittypet, though," Featherpaw questioned as Ivypaw grinned, tail flicking at the revelation that they were distant kin. "How does that work?"

"So was Firestar," Hawkfrost replied, beckoning for the two apprentices to follow him. As they left the clearing, he continued. "Your mother is the daughter of one of his kittypet brothers. Now come. Mapleshade has a new apprentice I want you to meet."

Featherpaw and Ivypaw's eyes went as wide as saucers, and they giggled, sharing a happy glance. The night was just getting better and better for the two apprentices! As they did so, two more cats emerged from the trees, and the three stopped. Hawkfrost's lips twitched upwards as he met Mapleshade's gaze, as well as the smaller form next to her.

"Hawkfrost," the faded tortoiseshell greeted. Hawkfrost merely dipped his head, and Ivypaw and Featherpaw did the same. "Meet my new apprentice." She nodded at the dark gray cat. "I expect her to do great things here. Flightpaw, these are your new clanmates."

* * *

In another plane of existence, a group of four cats huddled around a pool. Close together, they were watching the water intensely as images played across it. Once in awhile, a cat would gasp or murmur at a particular event, but no one moved or spoke above a whisper. Eventually, the images faded, and they stepped back.

"So, Fawnstep," Bluestar began, once the images had faded completely. She shook herself out from sitting for so long. "What have you seen? What is the new prophecy?"

The former Skyclan medicine cat frowned, still gazing into the depths of the pool. "Give me a moment," she whispered, brow furrowed. "Prophecies as complex as this one take a little time to piece together."

"Another prophecy," Redtail muttered from his place at his leader's side. "That's three going on at once now. Something very big is about to occur. And very complicated, as Fawnstep explained. Everything will hinge on this coming war. I can feel it in my marrow."

"I agree," Cloudstar added quietly, not wishing to disturb Fawnstep's thoughts. "The Dark Forest is growing more powerful by the day, and there is so little we can do about it. They have recently recruited another one of my apprentices." His voice shook with anger. "This one is barely six moons, hardly more than a kit. How much longer will Skyclan have to suffer?"

"It will not be long before we lose sight over the Dark Forest entirely," Bluestar replied worriedly. "We will need to be in contact more, but the distance between our skies is large. They have the advantage, having just one Dark Forest for all five clans."

"We could keep messengers," Redtail put in. He turned to Cloudstar, dipping his head respectfully. "But it would have to be up to you. We all know how your clan refuses to let anyone without Skyclan blood into your skies, Bluestar being the exception."

"You can stay," Cloudstar declared with little hesitation. "You and your kin. Jayfeather has already practically joined our ranks, anyways. You and he are descended from me, so I have little doubt that the others will turn you away."

Redtail looked to Bluestar for confirmation. The blue-gray she-cat nodded, so the former deputy voiced his agreement.

"I have it!" Fawnstep gasped, shooting up from her crouched position, blue eyes shining. The other three leaders turned to her as she spoke the deciphered prophecy. "_After the sharp-eyed dove and the roaring lion, hope will come on hawk's heavy wings._"

Redtail and Bluestar shared a worried look, and the group remained silent for several moments.

"The meaning is obvious," Bluestar began carefully. "I do hope you are considering our offer, Cloudstar. This new prophecy only proves it."

The pale gray tom hissed, suddenly hostile. "I have tolerated your presence in my clan on the condition that you never bring up that offer, Bluestar. I hope you remember that. Skyclan has fought for their home in the gorge. Cyanide and Pasha's Gang are just another challenge we will overcome together."

Bluestar's ears flattened, and Redtail hurried to change the subject.

"Who will we deliver the prophecy to?" He asked cautiously. Cloudstar opened his mouth to speak, but it was Fawnstep who answered, smiling mischievously.

"I saw something in the pool," she announced. "I know the exact cat to give it to."

"Who?" Cloudstar asked, still shooting a sidelong glare at Bluestar. "Echosong? Hawkpaw? We've already given the latter the _Star and Dark_ prophecy."

"Firestar or Lionblaze?" Bluestar suggested. Fawnstep chuckled.

"No. The prophecy is going to be given to someone else. One of the few cats who can bridge the gap between Skyclan and the original four clans."

"Who?" Cloudstar demanded. Fawnstep smirked.

"The leader of Shadowclan. Blackstar."

* * *

**There we are. Thank you all so much for reading **_**Fire and Tiger: Secrets of the Past**_**! All the follows, favorites, and reviews have prompted me to keep on writing what I love, and I'm excited to continue on. The next book, **_**Fire and Tiger: Divided Future**_**, will be out by this Friday, and I will continue updating weekly until we catch up with my current work. Sadly, I'm very busy irl and have two other stories to focus on, so updates will slow significantly once we pass that mark. **

**But it is what it is. I will write as much as I can, and I'm looking forward to seeing y'all Friday! Have a great week!**


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